


Our Little Horror Story (Part 1)

by demonfire57



Category: Five Nights at Freddy's
Genre: Alternate Universe, Dark Past, Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, Gen, Killer Animatronics (Five Nights at Freddy's), Mild Language, Possessed Animatronics (Five Nights at Freddy's), Sentient Animatronics (Five Nights at Freddy's)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-30
Updated: 2020-11-26
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:07:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 23
Words: 30,975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24998803
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/demonfire57/pseuds/demonfire57
Summary: Alexis, Mitchell, and Tori are the newest hires for Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria and Party Rooms. The recent college graduates each have something special to bring to the table as the newest night guards, though not everyone is willing to see beyond what they have grown accustomed to. So when the three guards discover a hidden secret long forgotten, a series of events from the past return to haunt the head of security.
Comments: 9
Kudos: 20





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Greetings once again from Freddy Fazbear's! Hope you guys enjoyed Scraps cause this one is going to be a tad different from that story.  
> This one has been in the works for a while, but I never actually sat down to write it out until now.  
> So please enjoy! I hope you guys love it!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit: Fixed spelling and grammatical errors

_ October 2003 - The Day it Ended  _

The pale full moon glowed into the darkness of the city. Though many lights kept the already sleeping town from seeing it's potential, one place was far enough to enjoy it's full beauty. The moon light shone through the window of an age-old restaurant, providing plenty of light for the small group that lived within its walls. 

One human sat amongst them, one of the animatronics stood before them, wrapping their human caretaker's arms from their hands to their elbows as their hands quaked uncontrollably, unable to keep still. 

"Are you sure you're alright?" a hushed voice asked, unhidden fear in their words. 

"I promise I'm fine," the human spoke, "Just took a bit of a beating is all." 

"That was more than just a beating," a low growl came from another animatronic, this one deeper than the previous, "You could've been killed!" 

"Freddy, I got lucky like I usually do. Besides, where are the others?" 

"They took tha' thin' ta the Parts 'n Service room, lass,'' another voice spoke, a red paw thumbing in a general direction, "The toys will make sure tha' no one sees the scallywag, at least fer a while. We can' hide 'im forever, though." 

"Eventually, someone will find him. I'd rather have this all sorted out by then." 

The yellow animatronic, who was patching up their companion, pulled away, "There! That should be enough coverage to keep you safe until you get out." 

"I only have another hour anyways," the human looked at the clock on the wall, "Then, I'll have to explain everything to the boss when he gets here... and the owner." 

Another low growl came from the animatronic called Freddy before heavy footfalls sounded across the floor, back and forth. 

"It's not fair! We were the ones that rabbit was after, and you ended up getting hurt in the process! How can you be so calm about this whole ordeal?" 

"Freddy! You know very well that all of this is my fault," The guard moved from their spot, going to their animatronic friend, "I turned him on, I set him on the loose..." The guard wrapped their arms around the bear, holding onto them like a child, "I was lucky to get away and stop him before he could do any real damage." 

"Perhaps, but you still got hurt." 

"It doesn't matter, I'll heal over time." 

"And what about this new problem that we have? What are you going to do about it?" 

The guard was quiet, looking back at the other three who stood in the room with them. The big purple rabbit, the yellow chicken, and the red pirate fox looked at their friend for answers. The guard looked up at the big brown bear, their face falling to seriousness, "I'll think of something. I made a promise to free you one day, and I'm not giving up on that yet."


	2. New Additions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Take another chapter today cause I love you guys so much!
> 
> Edit: fixed spelling and grammatical errors

_ Thirty years later... _

Car wheels halted in the gravel paved parking lot before the power was cut. The doors opened, allowing the driver to exit. Alexis Silverstein looked at the building in front of her with a keen eye, steeling her nerves. 

The short-haired brunette had only heard stories of the restaurant as a kid; how ten kids disappeared without a trace over the course of six years, the animatronics that were claimed to move from room to room during the night, and the owners and managers had no accountability to the "incidents" that happened over time. 

Alexis pulled the paper clipping out of her pocket, reading over the advertisement again: 

_ Wanted: Staff Members  _

_ Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria and Party Rooms is looking for servers and security guards to help with the upcoming 50th anniversary! $9.50 an hour, includes FREE pizza and soda for 6+ hour shifts!  _

_ Apply within or call 1-800-Freddy-Fazbear.  _

When she had first seen the advertisement, an idea sprung. Although the wages seemed decent enough, it might be the only chance she had was able to know the truth about everything that had happened as well as finally get the approval from her parents that she longed for. 

Alexis shoved the paper back in her pocket and headed up to the building. 

Once inside, loud music faded in with the sound of arcade games and shouting. The place was packed to brim with kids and grown-ups plus the usual staff members, who were easy to spot with their deep purple dress shirts and name tags. 

Though the place was busy, it was surprising how clean the place was. Alexis half-expected the place to smell of mildew and to find pizza embedded into the black and white checkard-board flooring and on the white walls. However, the place was cleaned and smelt of candy and baked goods. Some heavy smells of fresh pizza and chicken came from the large dining area, which was just beyond the entry hall where Alexis stood. 

"Excuse me, miss," a voice piped up, "Can I help you?" 

Alexis turned, realizing a hostess was standing at her post not two feet from where she stood. She was a small thing, maybe no more than eighteen years of age, with thick blond hair piled on top of her head. Her blue eyes were warm as well as the smile that was permanently spread across her face. She, too, wore the same deep purple dress shirt that everyone else wore and black dress slacks with black shoes. Her name tag flashed the name "April" on her right. 

"Uh, I have an appointment with the general manager about a security position?" Alexis approached the podium where the hostess stood behind. 

"Of course, give me one moment," she pulled out a vintage dial phone, red in color, and spun the wheel a few times before placing the receiver by her ear. 

"Mr. Ashford, there's a young lady here for an interview regarding a security position?" April listened for a bit before pulling the receiver away from her ear, "What's the name?" 

"Alexis Silverstein," Alexis spoke. 

"She says her name is Alexis Silverstein," April spoke. 

The manager must've said something because April nodded, "Yes sir, I'll let her know," before hanging up the phone and returning it to its place behind the podium. 

"Mr. Ashford is doing a group interview with you and two others when they get here," April explained, "When they arrive, I'll let him know and he'll send someone down to collect you." 

Alexis nodded before the hostess spoke again, "Did you want to wait in here? Otherwise, the arcade is open, too." 

"No, I'll wait here." 

Alexis took advantage of the opportunity to gaze at some of the old black and white photos that lined the walls of the entryway. Each photo was different, though the same elements were among each gold frame; animatronic creatures with large beaming faces stood beside unfamiliar humans, most likely former workers who had left the business as years passed by. 

One of the photos, which caught Alexis' eye, was an older one, maybe the first one ever taken of the restaurant. In the center of the photo was of a giant animatronic bear, pale in comparison to it's darker counterpart, but still wore the signature bowtie and tophat. Though his microphone was absent from his hand, his large paws were on two men's shoulders, who were grinning at the photographer. The one on the far right was a clean cut gentleman in a dress shirt with a dress jacket. His smile was kind and inviting, as if he wanted the person who looked upon him to enjoy themselves. The other man, on the far left, wore a mechanic's jumpsuit, dark in color. He, unlike his friend, was more grizzly and looked exhausted, as if he had worked long into the night to have everything prepared for the restaurant's opening. Though, there was something about him that set Alexis on edge a bit. 

"That's William Afton and Henry Emily," a voice spoke from behind. 

Alexis whirled around to see another woman about her age smiling. 

She was about average in height as well as size with dark rimmed glasses and freckles covering her face. Her deep red hair was pulled back into a ponytail, keeping the heat away from her neck, which, too, was red from the sunburn she must've contracted over the past couple of weeks. 

The woman held out her hand, "I'm Tori. Tori Green." 

"Alexis Silverstein," she shook her new companion's hand, "So, what do you know about Freddy's?" 

"Practically grew up in these walls," Tori answered, "Anything you want to know about this place, you can ask me." 

"Or better yet, me!" 

The two girls turned as a man joined their conversation. His dark skin practically glowed under the dimmed entryway lighting, his wavy black hair falling in front of his emerald eyes. He grinned as Tori suddenly pushed him back playfully, "Mitch! You sly dog! What're you doing here?!" 

"Hey! My uncle used to work for the company! I can't resist the opportunity to work for such an amazing place," the man laughed, ruffling up Tori's hair. 

Tori let out a laugh then turned to Alexis, "Alex, this is Mitchell Inta. He's a friend of mine from college. Mitch, this is Alexis Silverstein." 

"Silverstein," Mitch shook Alexis' hand, his expression suddenly deep in thought, "You wouldn't happen to be related to the infamous Charles Silverstein, by any chance?" 

"He's my grandfather, actually. Why?" 

Mitch shoved his hand in his pocket, "You're from that family that was trying to shut down Freddy's back in '87. What are you doing here?" 

"Why do you want to know?" Alexis straightened her back, looking up at Mitch with narrowed eyes, "I don't need to explain myself to you or to anyone else." 

"Excuse me," the trio turned as the hostess appeared, "Mr. Ashford is ready to see you. Maxwell, here, will take you to his office." 

The man, Maxwell, was a tall individual in a security outfit. He wore a heavy duty deep violet shirt with a gold security badge, black dress pants, and black dress shoes. A radio was attached to his right side, the speaker sitting on his shoulder. 

"If you would follow me, please." 


	3. Meet the Animatronic Family

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Greetings again! Hope everyone is doing well! Please enjoy another slice of pizza, if you will ;)  
> Edit: fixed spelling and grammatical errors

"And thus brings us to our current situation," Mr. Ashford spoke from his large desk chair. 

The office where the three interviewees sat was nearly double compared to other restaurant offices and covered with black and white wall tiling. Posters and drawings covered the walls, obscure characters in all shapes and sizes covered the paper, soulless eyes looking out at the viewer. Pizza sat on the mahogany desk, the smell permeating the air that already smelt of must. 

They must've been in the office for a little over an hour, talking with the general manager, who seemed to have a questionable motive according to Alexis. The man, though average in height, was about thirty plus years in age with thinning blond hair, making him look almost bald. His piercing blue eyes held mischief and malice behind the orbs, as if watching and waiting from something to happen that could catch him off guard. 

Compared to the other workers, Mr. Ashford wore a pale pink dress shirt with small grease spots covering the fabric from his folded collar to the tucked folds that sat behind his belt buckle. He wore no tie, but still the casual black dress slacks and shoes like his employees. The manager folded his hands, leaning forward on his desk, "Any questions?" 

"Yes," Alexis spoke up, "You already have a night guard, what's the deal with wanting us to work the overnight shift?" 

"Quite simple really, Miss Silverstein," Mr. Ashford stood, moving around his desk and clasping his hands behind his back, "Our current night guard, Sarah McCellian, has worked for the company for over thirty years. Though she is a favorite among our clients and guests, we, as a company, appreciate everything she has done, but it's time for her to... move on, so to say." 

"Isn't there another guard that could replace her?" Alexis pressed. 

"Well, the thing is, you three are my eighth choice. We're already full on day guards, but need night guards so badly that it's getting to be difficult. And Miss McCellian isn't making it any easier for us," Ashford continued, "She has a system of figuring out which guards are the best to work during the night by subjecting a 'five nights' trial. Though, most of the guards have left after the first night, only Maxwell and another guard are considered to be able to cover for Sarah when she's away." 

"Wonder why," Mitch rolled his eyes at the obscurity of the situation. 

Mr. Ashford belted out a hearty chuckle, "Well, I can see Sarah'll have her work cut out for her." 

"Does that mean we have the job?" Tori asked, leaning forward with wide eyes. 

"For now, at least until Sarah determines otherwise." 

The trio grinned at one another as Tori rubbed her hands, "Great! When do we start?" 

"Tonight." 

*** 

Maxwell led the small group out of the office and down the hallway. 

"I see old Ashford is trying a new trick," Maxwell chuckled, "But might as well show ya the place while we wait for Sarah to show up." 

"Who is this Sarah McCellian by the way?" Alexis asked, "What does our manager have against her?" 

Maxwell stopped, thinking, "The two of them never saw eye to eye when he was hired after the previous manager left. In all honesty, I thought the company would've made Sarah the head of Fazbear's because she's been here longer than any of us." 

"She's a lead of sorts?" 

"She's head of security for all of the Fazbear locations, including Circus Baby's Emporium." 

The three looked at each other, shock covering their faces. 

"Ashford didn't tell you?" Maxwell was equally surprised, "Great, first it's trying to get her fired, then the letters, now dragging names through the mud." 

"What letters?" 

"Nevermind," Maxwell grinned again, "Mitch, I know you and Tori know our animatronic characters quite well. How about you, Alex?" 

Alexis shook her head in a negative, "I never been here before." 

"Seriously? Not even when you were a kid?" 

"No, my... relatives didn't care for the place much. Besides, I don't see what the big deal is about them, other than from stories that I've been told." 

"Well, we've got to fix that! And quick! Come on, I'll introduce you to the gang, since they're not performing right now. And don't listen to everything people say, half of the time it's bs anyway." 

The four guards hastened their steps, following Maxwell into the main party room. 

Kids and adults lined the tables as waiters and waitresses went from table to table, serving and clearing as guests moved back and forth from the dining area and the arcade. Children shouted and groaned, parents talked, and the atmosphere was filled with a sense of joy. Several security guards surrounded the area, eyes always watching, while some interacted with the kids. It was surprising to the newbies how much calm seemed to hang in the background of the busy pizzaria, as if everyone felt safe in the comfort of knowing the guards were there. 

"Here we are," Maxwell grinned, hoping up on the stage. 

Three towering animatronics stood side by side on the massive stage, each one taller than Maxwell who already was a big guy. 

The far left, a big sky blue rabbit stood, a red electric guitar in his robotic hands; his ears were flopped forward, but enough to see the half-lidded emerald eyes that peered out to the party room. In the middle was an equally large brown bear in a black top hat, holding a microphone in his hands, his pale blue orbs also taking in everything around him. On the far right, a thin yellow chicken stood in nothing but a pink bathing suit with a white bib that screamed "Let's Party!" and a pink and orange cupcake on the plate in her left hand. 

Together, each one held a vintage feel, though they were equally cute and calm. 

"These are the current toy animatronics," Maxwell explained as the newbies came closer, "Each one is a whopping six feet in height and created specifically for the joy of entertainment." 

"Foxy was always my favorite growing up," Mitch laughed, "He hasn't seen the stage since '87, though, right?" 

"Not always," Maxwell disagreed, "Sometimes he and Justice do special events here from time to time, though they hang out mostly in the revamped 'Pirate's Cove'." 

"That's an animatronic I haven't heard of before," Tori pointed out. 

"Our girl, Sarah, gave the toy version of Foxy the name 'Justice' back when she was still a newbie. From my understanding, she actually started out as a maintenance worker from a third party company before she took up the position as a night guard." 

"Why would she do that?" Alexis asked. 

Maxwell shrugged, "I dunno. That's all I really know about her, other than the fact that she's my boss and loves the animatronics a lot." 

"Since I don't know them very well," Alexis allowed a smile, "Which one is which?" 

"Oh, that's an easy one," Maxwell stood next to the bear, pointing toward the rabbit, "This guy with the guitar is Toy Bonnie," he turned to the chicken, "That's Toy Chica and the bear here is the leader, Toy Freddy." 

"And Maxwell knows not to be up on the stage when it's close to show time," a voice broke out, causing the security guard to go pale. 


	4. The Head of Security

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Hope your weekends are going well! Have another chapter! ♡  
> Edit: fixed spelling and grammatical errors

The trio turned to face the voice as Maxwell leapt off the stage, landing with a soft thump on the floor, before addressing the figure behind them, "Sarah!" 

Sarah McCellian stood with her hands on her hips, her dark eyes narrowed. The head of security looked hard at her subordinante, tsking softly, "Honestly, I thought you would've learned by now not to mess with our performers." 

"Not messing, boss, just showing them off." 

Like the rest of the security staff, Sarah wore the same heavy cotton button down dress shirt with black dress slacks and dress shoes. What made her stand out, other than the large 'Fazbear Entertainment' badge that was attached over the right side of her chest, was the deep purple baseball cap that covered her thick silver tress, which was pulled back into a long braid that hung over her shoulder, landing just above the badge. She, too, wore the heavy duty radio on her work belt, as well as a flashlight and a long black baton. 

Sarah shook her head, "You know the rules, Maxwell. Don't make me ask Ashford to deduct your hours again next week because of these little 'mishaps' you seem to be known for." 

Maxwell nodded, turning to the newbies, "Guys, I want to introduce you to Miss Sarah McCellian, the head of security." 

"Pleasure," the woman held out her hand, shaking each one individually, "Welcome to Freddy Fazbear's." 

"This is Tori, Alexis, and Mitch. They're the recently hired night guards." 

"Ahh... the ones interested in the night shift, huh?" 

"Not like we really had a choice," Alexis grumbled. 

Sarah belted out a large chorkle, "Ah-ha! Don't tell me, let me guess... recently hired with no way of choosing day or night shift, am I right?" 

"Pretty much," Tori shrugged. 

"Well, at least we've got something to work with," Sarah turned to Maxwell, "When did these guys get hired?" 

"A little under an hour ago." 

Sarah rubbed her chin in thought, "So no processed paperwork, huh? Which means no badges nor tags made yet..." 

"Is that a problem?" Mitch asked. 

"Usually takes a bit of time to get everything sorted normally, but I can see why Ashford decided to throw you to the dogs, so to say. Never mind that most of the new hires leave after the first night, anyway." 

The head of security shrugged her shoulders, "Well, I suppose we better get started, that way I can at least give you three a bit of time to learn the ropes before we close. Has Maxwell shown you the place yet?" 

The trio shook their heads in a negative. 

"Alright then, I'll show you around then." 

*** 

Sarah took the three to the far edges of the party room, leaving Maxwell to his post by the stage. 

"The main party room is our normal dining area," Sarah explained, "It has retained its use as a 'celebrate together' room since the place first opened in '83, regardless if it's someone's birthday or not. It is also the entryway to the magic of Freddy Fazbear's. This far corner room, behind the curtain here, is the entrance to our recently renovated 'Pirate's Cove'." 

Sarah pulled the deep purple curtain aside, revealing another room that was half the size of the main dining area. Three tables rested side by side, covered in white tablecloths with pizza and cupcakes lining the tables. Some plush toys sat in chairs, while others sat on three designed pirate chests in corners of the room. On the opposite end of the party room, surrounded by a small group of kids, two animatronics in the shape of foxes stood, twisting their bodies as they interacted with their audience. 

The first fox was a tall red one, a dark brown vest and black belt strapped onto it's person. It also wore a black eye patch that would flip up from time to time, revealing it's set of golden eyes. One of its hands was absent, a large pirate hook in its place. The second fox, which stood a little ways from its 

counterpart, was pink and white, a fluffy tail twitching behind it as it moved. It, too, wore a dark vest and black belt on it's person, as well as a set of fake rings on both hands. 

The pink and white fox looked back to where the guards were peering in, turning to its counterpart, "Capt'n Foxy! We have some landlubbers coming aboard!" 

Alexis nearly jumped as Sarah chuckled, "Permission to come aboard, Captain?" 

"Wha' do ye say, kiddies?" the red fox animatronic spoke to the small group, "Should we let a couple of scallywags aboard?" 

At the sound of kids cheering, the trio watched as Sarah stepped in, walking up to the foxes. 

"What ye be needin' lass?" Foxy asked, pointing his hook toward the guard. 

"Figured I check in on everyone, make sure they're behaving themselves," Sarah winked at the group. 

"Aye, they be doin' fine, lass," Foxy chuckled, "Don' ye worry about 'em, Justice an' I hav' 'em in trainnin' ta become real pirates like us!" 

"Very well, then. I'll leave you all to your chanties, have fun kiddos!" Sarah waved, returning to the other side of the curtain. 

"That was amazing!" Mitch looked at Sarah in awe, "Since when have they been able to interact like that?" 

"When they needed to be repaired," Sarah explained, "We added a special software to their systems for them to be able to interact with a small group of individuals. It's mostly Foxy and Justice that do it, but the others can do it too." 

"Why is she called Justice?" Tori asked, "Maxwell mentioned that you gave Toy Foxy that name." 

"Heh," Sarah scratched the back of her neck, "Justice, or Toy Foxy if you will, was a favorite back in the day, so much so that the kids at the time actually destroyed the animatronic. She wasn't built like the others, as the company had a few setbacks due to money issues. Eventually, the staff got tired of trying to repair Foxy and left her as a 'building'' attraction. The name Foxy didn't fit her anymore, so everyone nicknamed her 'Mangle'. 

"Then, when I was hired to do a few repairs on the animatronics, I placed Mangle back together and called her 'Justice'. She got her "justice" by being fixed and was able to perform again." 

Alexis peaked back in at the animatronics before turning back to Sarah, "You really do care about them." 

"Of course. They've been a part of my life since I was kid, and it's my job to help give that similar experience to every child that comes in here. After all, we're one big family, no matter where we come from or who we are." 


	5. Meet the Humans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Greetings all! Apologies for delay in chapters. I've been busy with other projects and, unfortunately, my writing time sometimes has to go on the back burner. Hopefully that won't be an issue going forward.  
> Please enjoy another chapter on me!
> 
> Edit: fixed spelling and grammatical errors

Sarah led the trio through the rest of the place, introducing the staff members to the newbie night guards. 

In the arcade was Felix and Ida. They kept watch on all of the games and the prize counter where Justine worked, taking tickets and handing out prizes, as well as introduced the trio to the Marionette and Balloon Boy animatronics. 

"Why is the animatronic called the marionette? I get why this one is called 'Balloon Boy,'"Alexis thumbed in the direction of said animatronic. 

"The puppet, as many people call him," Sarah began, "is actually a special animatronic. This one, though he doesn't speak, is the giver of this room. When a child has a birthday here, they get a chance to win an "encounter" with the puppet. If the child wins a specific game, they can earn a special token to be used at the prize counter to start up the music box. When the song ends, the puppet appears and presents a gift to the child." 

"What's this gift?" 

Sarah shrugged, "Most of the time it's one of our larger sized plush toys, even though it could be anything." 

"But that still doesn't answer my question as to why it's called the marionette." 

"Do you know what a clown puppet looks like?" 

When all three nodded, Sarah grinned, "There's your answer. He's an animatronic that was designed to look like a puppet." 

Following the arcade was a long hallway that led to eight smaller party rooms, the hallways guarded by Troy, Brooke, and Tony, while Randy, Marco, and Taylor traveled in and out of the multiple rooms. 

"In '87, when the toy animatronics were first placed on the stage, we originally had six party rooms. Over the past few years, we've expanded them as well as increased the number of them." 

"Why so many?" Tori asked. 

"A lot of folks started to want private rooms, some place where the adults could sit and talk in peace without the commotion of everything going on around them. Unfortunately, as the place regained popularity, it was getting difficult to schedule parties around those folks. Hence the number of rooms as well as guards in this general area - though Troy, Brooke, and Tony tend to move all over the restaurant as needed." 

The final two guards, Cynthia and Wayne, stood with Maxwell around the main party room, the second in command standing by another stage area. 

"What's behind the curtains over by Maxwell?" Tori asked with interest. 

"That's one of the stages we're going to use for a surprise on the fiftieth anniversary party in the upcoming week," Sarah explained, "We have some of the models from back in '83 and '87 that are going to make a special appearance as part of our huge celebration." 

"It still baffles me how this place has managed to stay open for so long," Alexis spoke. 

"Why do you say that?" the head turned to look at her charge. 

Alexis shrugged, pressing the subject lightly, "Just all the stories that surround this place is it." 

Sarah raised a brow before shaking her head, "Kids these days... still passing rumors around like sticks of bubble gum..." 

The head turned back, heading to a set of white double doors. She indicated to her charges to follow her through, "If you want something good, this is the place to ask." 

Beyond the set of doors was a large kitchen, bleached in white. Like the flooring of the party rooms, the same black and white checkered pattern filled the place as staff dressed in white moved about the kitchen. Long countertops and tables were covered in dough, flour, sugar, and all matter of sweets. A fire blazed from the old style brick fireplace in the far back, the heat bringing a small sheen of sweat into the room. Every intake of breath brought forth new smells of pizza, chicken, and sweets. 

"Oh my god," Tori closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. 

"You smell all those goodies?" Sarah chuckled. 

"Oh yes," Mitch too inhaled deeply. 

"This is where the real work is," Sarah indicated to the room, "All these staff members are the ones cooking all hours of the day from nine in the morning to nine-thirty in the evening, preparing the main courses, appetizers, and the treats that shape our restaurant. Ask any other staff member, and they'll always say the same thing, 'The kitchen is where the true magic of our pizza lies.'" 

"But I thought everyone came because of the animatronics?" Alexis turned to look at Sarah. 

"The kids do, and the arcade, but the parents come here for the memories and the food." 

"As well as our Sarah!" one of the kitchen staff came forward, a huge smile covering her face. She was a young woman, no more than twenty-five, dressed in the bleached white kitchen attire consisting of a white t-shirt, white slacks, and an apron wrapped around her small figure. Flour covered her front and the tops of her shoes as well as small specks of food coloring on her hands. 

Sarah chuckled, "Everyone, this is Denise. She's head of the kitchen here since our lead chef left about two years ago." 

"Gotta give Sarah credit for that," the woman winked, "And these folks are?" 

"This is Tori, Alexis, and Mitch. Ashford hired them to be my replacements in the next couple of months." 

The chef shook her head in disappointment, her blond hair swinging from the pulled back ponytail, "That's absolutely cruel! You shouldn't have to be forced to leave!" 

Sarah rolled her eyes, "And yet, the manager and I don't always see eye to eye, hon. I was lucky after that first accident." 

"Accident?" Alexis looked up, her interest peaked. 

"Nothing to concern yourselves with. Besides, the reason I brought you in here was to introduce you specifically to Denise and her staff. If you want anything to eat or drink, just ask any of them. Denise and Ernest, both, make a fantastic basket of fireball chicken strips." 

Denise laughed, "If you say so! Speaking of which, you want the usual this evening?" 

Sarah tapped her chin in thought, "Might as well. I'm sure these rascals here will tell you what they'd like a little later. Put it on my order under my name." 

"Alright, remember the kitchen closes at nine-thirty on the dot. Last pizzas are popped in the oven then." 


	6. More Secrets than Answers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for being inactive. I've been struggling with a few things in my current living situation and haven't really had time to post my chapters. So, as a thank for your patience, have three chapters tonight.  
> I promise we'll get to meat of this thing soon, there's just a bit of background work that needs to get done beforehand.
> 
> Edit: fixed spelling and grammatical errors

After the meetings with everyone, Sarah pulled the newbies into the far back office, having them sit in a few of the chairs that surrounded a small desk. 

The room was smaller than Mr. Ashford's, which meant this room may have been a storage space at one point before it was refurnished into an office, and dim with the only two lights being an overhead light and a small desk lamp. There were two doors on either side, both open and allowing cool air to flow in from other parts of the pizzaria. Pictures and news clippings covered the dark walls on either side of the doors, all screaming "Freddy Fazbear" as well as a poster from the original restaurant, marketing the grand opening. 

Sarah took a seat behind the cluttered desk before leaning forward, "I'd like to pick at your brains a bit before we get too far into this. What do you guys think of the place so far?" 

"Just like how I remember it," Tori smiled. 

Sarah picked up an application paper, chuckling softly, "Apparently, my memory is going a bit... Tori Green, the wandering wonder." 

Tori chuckled in return, perking up, "So you do remember me." 

"I see so many faces in here, sometimes it's hard to keep track of who's who, but I remember you... still can't believe I didn't recognize your face." 

Alexis looked at the two of them, "How do you know each other?" 

"Tori was a child whose family was close with my own," Sarah explained, "The first time I met her, she was on the wrong side of the stage, so to say. One the animatronics alerted me of a foreign presence behind the curtains, so I went looking and found her playing hide-and-seek behind Bonnie." 

"I still have no idea how Bonnie told you where I was." 

"Another part of the software. It helps keep us guards informed about every movement in this place, especially since the building has nearly doubled in size compared to what it used to be back in the '80s." 

"And having an extra set of eyes, always helps," Mitch grinned. 

Sarah picked up another sheet of paper, "Mitchell Inta... your uncle used to work for our sister location, am I right?" 

"That's right." 

"Why did you apply for a security position?" Sarah set the paperwork down, looking at the young man, "Your uncle was one of the maintenance workers." 

"I wanted a position with the company that practically raised me," Mitch shrugged his shoulders, "It doesn't matter to me if I work in maintenance or security." 

"Well, I hate to say it's not the easiest to be a night guard," Sarah answered, "but I'll take all the help I can get my hands on, especially now," she turned to Alexis, "Now you, dear, I don't see an application." 

"I called the place and they just had me come in for an interview," Alexis took the newspaper clipping out of her pocket, handing it to the head of security. 

Sarah took it before setting it on the desk and pulled a notepad out. "Alright, let me get a bit of information from you. What's the last name?" 

"Silverstein." 

Sarah looked up, her dark eyes wide with surprise, "Charles Silverstein's granddaughter?" 

"Yes, ma'am," Alexis straightened up. 

"Interesting... Now, curiosity is a part of my nature, but why did you apply?" 

Alexis looked at her counterparts, turning back to Sarah, "I recently graduated law school. I figured the position of a security guard would be a good way to get my foot in the door." 

"Perhaps, but there are plenty of places looking for security guards," Sarah tapped her fingers against the pad of paper, a knowing smile on her face, "And I know your family well enough to know about the vendetta they hold against Fazbear Entertainment. Why did you really apply?" 

Alexis shrugged, "Maybe I just wanted to." 

The head of security hummed in thought, continuing down the line of questions. 

A few moments later Sarah stood, going around to the back of the room, and opened a locker, "Since it's your first day, and we really weren't given a heads up about your arrivals, I'll just have you use these shirts for tonight." 

She pulled out three purple long sleeved shirts, the word "In-Training" in bold white lettering covered the back of the shirts. She handed each shirt to the newbies, explaining, "The typical uniform for the night guards are the same as the day guards; purple dress shirts, black dress pants or slacks, and black dress shoes. Starting tomorrow, you'll be expected to follow that dress code, but for tonight you can wear what you have on with this shirt over your current attire." 

"Could I change?" Tori asked, "I have a tank top on under this dress shirt." 

"If you want. I'm also going to have some of my staff show you the ropes of the day shift. As the night guards, you'll each be expected to work from six in the evening to six in the morning, which means you'll be covering some of the lunch and/or dinner breaks between six and ten, as well as act like a day guard to all of our guests," Sarah continued, "You'll also be expected to assist with clean up, which runs from ten to eleven, then your guarding shift begins again at eleven. You are welcome to take small breaks during the short period of six and nine, but only two fifteen minutes if you can. Your dinner will always be scheduled around eleven, after everyone, including staff, has left for the night. Are there any questions?" 

"Will you provide us with the work shirts?" Mitch asked. 

"I will. There are some in storage that I will need to wash before presenting to you. I will give you each two to start with. If you want more, all you need to do is ask." 

"Will asking for shirts be taken out of our paycheck?" 

"They shouldn't be. The only time I've had to ask Ashford to deduct pay from any of our guards was because they were doing something that they shouldn't have been and knew better than to do it," Sarah waved her hand in dismissal, "But that's a story for another time. Any other questions?" 

"What's up with the purple?" Alexis held up her shirt, glaring at it. 

"Purple was just a choice color. I was told it was to make us pop out in large gatherings, never mind that at the time we didn't have our radios or badges." 

"Seriously? How'd you communicate?" 

Sarah thumbed toward the wall, another red vintage phone held to said wall, "We still have the old 'phones on a wall' everywhere in this building. Some of the staff members prefer to use it, like our wait staff, instead of holding onto the bulky radio everywhere." 

"Well, that explains why April has one on her podium in the entryway," Tori grinned. 

"Indeed. Any other questions?" 

When no response came, Sarah smiled, "Let's get you guys set up then." 

*** 

Three security guards entered Sarah's office, the head explaining, "Felix, I want you to take Tori on your patrols through the arcade. Show her the ropes, if you will." 

Felix indicated for Tori to follow him, both disappearing out the door. 

"Troy, take Mitch with you and do the same thing for the hallways and party rooms. Have Brooke help you as well." 

Troy nodded, "Come on Mitch, you're gonna love what kind of trouble you can find in my area." 

Sarah turned to Alexis, "Alexis, I'm going to have Maxwell take you into the main party room. He'll show the ropes of guarding the main and side stages." 

As the familiar guard came forward, Alexis turned to Sarah, "Why can't you show us yourself?" 

"I have some important paperwork to file," Sarah explained, "That way you three are in our database as 'employees,' I don't want any confusion with other workers or our guests. I also have to alert the owner about the new hires, and it's not just you three either." 

"I thought that was Mr. Ashford's job?" 

"It is, but I have to make sure each one is cleared before I can grant them access to our more sensitive areas of this building," Sarah smiled, ruffling her hair, "Don't worry, Alexis, everything is going to be fine. You have Max here let me know if you see anything out of the ordinary." 

Alexis' shoulders slumped as she was led from the room, the office door shutting behind them softly. 

"Growing an attachment already, I see," Maxwell chuckled. 

"No, I'm just trying to understand a few things," Alexis growled in a reply. 

"Like what?" 

Alexis wasn't sure where to start. There was so much behind the curtain of what Freddy Fazbear's really was, there was no way to pinpoint a start or an end. Maxwell watched at the newbie struggle, "Did you maybe give a thought as to the people who could be jeopardized by your family's accusations?" 

"So what?" Alexis shrugged, "There are other jobs out there." 

"You wouldn't be just threatening jobs, Alexis," Maxwell stopped, leaning against the wall, "Anyone who wants to sue a company would also be threatening the happiness that that company brings. For example, this place for instance-" 

Maxwell held his hand out, indicating to the walls around them, "Fazbear's has brought out so much good, so much happiness, over the past thirty years, it over shadows a lot of the bad that hung over this building during its first twenty years of existence. Every adult in that party room, or in this building, can and will say that their experiences with the place have nothing but good memories, memories they want their children to have. The darkness that resides in our company's past is best left forgotten." 

"You know about the incidents, then?" 

"We all do," Maxwell shrugged his shoulders, "Sarah has always been forthcoming about the reports and what she knows. She was there as a kid when it happened... hell, she practically came with the building when the company handed over the reins to Ashford. As far as I know, everything she has told me has been the truth. I trust her, even with my life should anything crazy happen. 

"Believe it or not, I asked the same questions you did when I first started. That's why I trust her, not because of what happened, but what she does day in and day out to keep this place running like a well-oiled machine. And if you would want to take away what is her life, then that's a consequence you'll have to deal with." 

Maxwell stood straight then, crossing his arms over his chest, "So what's it going to be? Are you going to make claims in order to make your family happy for a short time? Or are you going to help make a ton of people happy by just doing your job?" 


	7. Strange Occurances

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyone care to guess what Alexis' answer is?
> 
> Edit: fixed spelling and grammatical errors

"Thank you again for coming to Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, everybody!" Toy Freddy's voice boomed through the darkened room as people clapped and cheered, "Don't forget to thank our staff for their wonderful hard work!" 

"And enjoy the pizza!" Toy Chica grinned. 

"We'll see you all next time!" Toy Bonnie waved as the lights faded back on and the animatronics fell silent. 

Maxwell nudged Alexis, the woman blinking a couple of times, "What did you think?" 

"That was pretty cool," Alexis grinned, "I can see why the kids like them so much." 

Maxwell let out a laugh, "Yeah, thankfully they don't play the same songs over and over again. That'll give me a headache." 

Alexis smiled, turning back to the still and silent animatronics, "Did they perform like that back in the day?" 

"Back when Sarah was a kid? I'm not sure, honestly. I do know that when the animatronics are taken away for their "system update," Sarah's always programs new kids' sing along songs into them so the kids can sing with the animatronics when they perform. It never ceases to amaze me what that girl can do." 

"Is she the one who oversees the care of the animatronics, then?" 

"Not always, we have a few guys come in for a security check twice a month, which is when we do our system upgrades on the characters. Sarah just helps with repairing them on an as-needed basis. She has enough problems on her plate, as it is." 

"Including that?" Alexis pointed. 

As a small crowd of guests were heading out the door, Ashford and Sarah came out of the hallways, the manager red-faced and grumbling quietly to the head of security. 

Maxwell turned to his radio's speaker, "Guys, any idea why Ashford's about to blow?" 

_ "It's the letters again, Max," _ a voice spoke over the speaker,  _ "I heard the latest one was signed 'Freddy Fazbear.'"  _

"What are these letters?" Alexis whispered. 

"I suppose you should know," Maxwell's eyes shifted from the two leaders to his charge, "After Ashford announced he was going to find a replacement for Sarah, notes started appearing in his office. Some were drawings, others were written notes, all indicating bad juju if Sarah was forcibly removed from the property." 

"So threatening letters?" 

"Pretty much. Though, I know he has no reason to want Sarah to be removed, other than the fact that she's over fifty years of age..." 

"He's an ageist?" Alexis cocked her head in wonder. 

"May not look like it, but he certainly acts like one," Maxwell agreed, "Anyway, these letters have been appearing non-stop. Some of the higher up seem to think Sarah is the one writing them." 

Alexis frowned, looking back to the manager and the head of security. Both stood in front of the stage, locked in a silently heated argument. Sarah kept a safe distance away from Ashford's bulky figure, making sure not to touch him in a manner that could potentially jeopardize her role even more. 

"I'm serious, Mr. Ashford sir," Maxwell and Alexis heard Sarah speak, "I have no idea why someone would send those letters in the first place, nevertheless sign them with our animatronic characters' names." 

"I think you do know who it is, Miss High'n'Mighty head of security," Ashford struck back, puffing his big chest up. 

"I already agreed to becoming replaced, but it doesn't mean I'm intentionally scaring away your choices nor am I writing threatening letters. Ask anyone here, I'm not the kind who would." 

Movement caught Alexis' eye, her focus moving from the two arguing adults to the three animatronics that stood before them. She could feel her eyes bulge from their sockets as all three animatronic heads turned slowly toward the arguing adults in unison, eyes narrowing at them. Toy Freddy's mouth opened and closed a few times before his animatronic ears twitched about, like he was sending a signal. 

"Max," Alexis tugged on the guard's sleeve, "I think the animatronic characters are having a fit." 

Maxwell's eyes shifted to the stage, eyes widening before looking back to Alexis, "Stay here, I'll be right back." 

Alexis watched as Maxwell crossed the floor toward the arguing adults. The second in command whispered in Sarah's ear, the head turning to look up at the animatronics before turning to the manager. 

"Mr. Ashford, I think we need to end this conversation for now." 

The manager huffed, "But it won't be over yet, Sarah." 

As the manager left the floor, Sarah climbed up onto the stage, standing behind the animatronics. Alexis watched as each robotic character was adjusted, snapping back into their normal stance. Sarah, then, patted Toy Chica's shoulder before nodding her thanks toward Alexis. She moved from the stage, disappearing out of the room and down the hallway toward her office. 

"What was that all about?" the newbie asked when Maxwell returned to their spot. 

"Sometimes the animatronics have issues when they hear arguing around the place," Maxwell shrugged his shoulders, "Just a small malfunction really." 

"I thought the animatronics weren't that smart." 

"Oh, they are. All of them, in fact. It's built into their software to always be alert of their surroundings, even when they're not performing," Maxwell paused, scratching the tip of his nose, "You want to see something cool?" 

Alexis gave him a funny look, making the higher up laugh, "Nothing like that, I promise! I just thought, since you've never been to Fazbear's, that you might want to see the original performers." 

"The same ones behind this curtain?" 

"Yeah! Come on, give into a little trouble now and then." 

Alexis looked about, biting her bottom lip, before turning back to Maxwell and nodded. The two guards climbed up on the stage, pulling the curtains back just enough for the two of them to slip through without anyone noticing. 

Behind the heavy purple star-covered show curtain was darkness. Alexis could see a few outlines, but very little else. The shapes that could have been the animatronics were several heads taller than her, they each had to be at least six feet tall or taller. She heard Max fumbling around before a light came on from the flashlight in his hands. 

As the light shone onto the characters, Alexis could stare at each one in shock. 

The three characters were nearly the same as the toy versions, though each one looked a lot heavier than their counterparts. They were also lined up the same as the toys, Bonnie the Bunny on the far left, Freddy Fazbear in the center, and Chica the Chicken on the far right. 

"Well? What do you think?" 

Alexis shook her head, "I don't know what to think..." 


	8. Whose Really in Charge?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please enjoy this next chapter :)  
> Thank you again for all the support!
> 
> Edit: fixed spelling and grammatical errors

Alexis helped the last of customers out the door, each one smiling and thanking everyone again for the wonderful experience. 

It was easy to keep track of the time, as the toys performed once every hour and always on the dot with a voice announcing the upcoming show times and how many more minutes were left to find a good spot before said show. So, three performances later, Alexis and Maxwell helped guide the last of the guests out the door, watching as kids struggled to stand with arms full of prizes. Alexis heard Maxwell chuckle when a child was asked by his parents if he needed help, the boy shaking his head in a negative as he clutched the giant Freddy plush in his little arms closer to his chest. 

Maxwell switched the sign over to "Closed" and locked the doors with the basic lock, "Alright, let's see if Sarah is out of her den yet." 

Tori and Mitch were waiting by the security office when they approached, Sarah appearing at the door with a clipboard in her hands. 

"Ah! There you are!" she smiled warmly at Maxwell and Alexis, "Hope your shift wasn't too exciting." 

"Heh, this one is a fast learner," Maxwell ruffled Alexis' hair, the younger glaring up at him. 

"Well, good then. This should be easy tonight," Sarah turned to Tori and Mitch, "I want you two to go and help Felix, Ida, and Justine in the arcade with restocking the prize counter, the puppet's music box, and cleaning the games. After that, you can help Randy, Marco, and Taylor with preparing Party Room C for a scheduled birthday there tomorrow. 

"Maxwell, you, Alexis, and I are going to help Cynthia and Wayne in the Main Party room while the kitchen staff is finishing up the last of their cleaning before they come out to help us." 

Everyone went their separate ways, Alexis following close behind Sarah as she entered into the hallway, heading toward the main party room. 

"Clean up is very simple," Sarah told Alexis, "Tonight, all you have to do is help pull the plastic table cloths off and get them into the trash. We leave everything on the table while doing so and wrap it up like a present. You understand where I'm coming from?" 

"I think so," Alexis answered, "Can I ask why the wait staff and the hostess don't have to help with the evening chores?" 

"Of course, and the answer is very simple. They're the ones that are cleaning up after everyone during the day. They bus the tables, serve the customers, clean out from under the tables, and, more often than not, are preparing the party rooms for later parties when the rest of us are guarding and cooking. Much of the kitchen staff started out as waiters and waitresses, it's one of the reasons why they keep that kitchen so clean." 

Alexis nodded in understanding. 

"After we clear the tables," Sarah continued, "we wipe down everything with our disinfectant spray, then get new table coverings on the tables and reset them. I'll have you go around with our dust broom and get the little pieces off the ground from under the tables," she turned toward Maxwell, "Remind me to have John vaccum the entryway before he leaves tonight." 

"Don't forget to have John vacuum the entryway, Sarah." 

The head of security scowled as Maxwell chortled, "Hey, I reminded you." 

"And for that snarky attitude of yours, you get to start in the front and work your way toward the back." 

Maxwell groaned inwardly, Alexis snorting at the hysterics between the two. 

*** 

The cleanup process was a slow one, specifically because of the amount of trash that littered the tables following the last show. 

"Is it always like this at the end of the night?" Alexis asked, pushing one of the tablecloths into the trash. 

"Not always," Sarah answered as she wiped down the table, "Thursdays thru Sundays are our normally busy days. However, we had a lot of birthday parties scheduled today due to the summer season, which makes it busier than normal. And we don't always do birthdays here, I've seen graduation parties, anniversaries... I think we even had one memorial done here." 

"Seriously? Who brings a funeral party to Freddy Fazbear's?" 

"I would," Sarah chuckled, "Besides, it's not very common. I think on that day, the person who passed may have worked for the company at one point or another. I didn't ask, it wasn't my place to." 

Alexis pulled a tablecloth out, stretching it over the table with Sarah's help, "You seemed to be highly respected around here." 

Alexis watched as Sarah's face seemed to soften at the comment, "I suppose you could say I've been around the block once or twice here. A lot of our current customers were children when I first started out back in '03. They see me as a friend or a family member because I've always been there." 

"Maxwell mentioned that," Alexis leaned forward on the table, eyes widening with curiosity, "Why did you decide to stay?" 

The head of security was quiet, her face scrunching as she thought, "It's been the only job I've been welcomed in. My first position was in a mechanic's shop. Even though I had the strength and experience to work with the cars, my boss wanted me to look pretty and sit behind the phone and do nothing. I wasn't made for that. I always knew somehow that I was made for something more than just taking down notes and answering phones." 

Alexis chuckled, "Really? Is that why you started off working as a member of the maintenance team here?" 

"Pretty much, I knew the equipment. The characters were a little fuzzy, but I remembered Freddy the most." 

"Is he your favorite then?" 

"Freddy?" Sarah smiled, showing off her upper teeth in a big grin, "Yes. Freddy has always been my personal favorite. And not because he's the face of this company, he's a leader. He cares for his friends very much and would do anything to help them." 

"You sound like you know him, like in depth." 

The head shrugged her shoulders, raising her hands to the sides, "Well, you work for this place for almost thirty years, you tell me different." 

"Sarah! Pizza's ready for your guards tonight!" Denise came out with four other kitchen staff members, hot pizza and cupcakes fresh off the pit. 

"Beautiful!" the head of security came over, taking in a huge whiff of the treats, sighing in content, "Just set them down on the front table by the stage, we'll help ourselves later." 

At that moment, Ashford came out of his office, briefcase in hand and coat in the other. 

"Looks like rain out," he gruffed toward his staff. 

Alexis glared at her manager as he pulled a paper plate off the small stack before taking several pieces of pizza and two of the cupcakes off the platters. 

"Good night staff! Drive safe!" Ashford granted one last time before disappearing out the door. 

"The nerve of that man!" Denise growled, her hands now balled into fists, "He knows very well the night guards are our most valuable people around this place, and yet he steals food right from their hands." 

"Denise, please," Sarah sighed, "It's of no use fighting about it. Besides, you know what Charlie would say, right?" 

"Charlie? Who's Charlie?" Alexis asked. 

"Sarah's nickname for Toy Chica," Maxwell answered, "All the toy animatronics have nicknames." 

"And Charlie most likely would say, 'It doesn't pay to play another's game,'" Denise sighed, "But still, he should show some respect." 

"He respects his pay enough to show common courtesy to you all. What he does to me is of little to no importance." 

Before anyone could argue, Sarah's hand was raised, "Enough. Back to work, we still have some ground to cover before you guys leave tonight." 

*** 

Once everything was finished, the place looked more like a child's wonderworld than a restaurant. Tori and Mitch soon joined Sarah and Alexis at the doors as they saw the rest of the staff out. 

"We'll be here tomorrow right away at six," Maxwell spoke to Sarah. 

"And see that you do," the head of security smiled, "I'll alert you if we need anything overnight." 

The second in command nodded, shaking hands with the trio again, "Good luck tonight, guys. You're gonna need it." 

As the last of the cars pulled out of the lot, Sarah brought her charges in, taking them to the prize counter in the Arcade room. The trio watched as she opened a small hidden box that was embedded into the wall, explaining, "This is our night locking system. It's made specifically to keep anything from 

getting in, as well as keep anything from getting out. Once we lock this, there's no way of opening the doors until six tomorrow morning." 

Sarah pulled a small switch as the lights in the arcade dimmed. Loud crashing noises came from all parts of the building, metal hitting metal like thunderclaps and locking sounding like cracking knuckles. 

"And that's all we need to do to lock the place?" Tori asked, surprised. 

"Pretty much," Sarah explained, "The metal sheets are thick enough to stop bombs from entering in here. No one can get in, and we can't get out." 


	9. Who Turned Out the Lights?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And... here comes the beginning of the discoveries.  
> Apologies for delay in updates, once again. I hit a road block so to say. Thankfully, I have all day tomorrow to work on the next few chapters so I'm hoping I can get another chapter up tomorrow.
> 
> Edit: fixed spelling and grammatical errors

The trio followed Sarah to the security office again. 

Before they were allowed to sit and eat, Sarah wanted to provide them with important equipment that she didn't want the day staff to know about. 

"Each of you will have your own heavy duty flashlights," Sarah explained, handing one to each new guard, "and your own radios. I expect you to use them as you may need them this first night." 

Each guard clipped the radios and flashlights to their new work belts before Sarah held up her long black baton. 

"Anyone want to take a guess as to what this is?" she asked. 

"It's a police baton," Alexis answered, shrugging her shoulders. 

"Baton, yes. A police one? No. Any other guesses?" 

When each guard shook their head in confusion, Sarah held the baton away from her, her thumb landing on a small black button on the handle. A bolt of energy flashed from the baton as the newbies jumped back, watching the electrical current run up and down the baton, wrapping around the metal like vines on a tree limb. 

"This is what I call a shocker," Sarah explained, turning it off, "It works like a tazer, but is nearly a hundred times stronger. One bolt could put you in the hospital if you're not careful. 

"The reason I'm telling you this is because being a night guard at Freddy Fazbear's is not the easiest job in the world. Since it's your first night, you might find yourselves unwelcomed. Should anything happen, I want you three to be able to use these as needed. If you promise not to horseplay with these things, I will give one to each of you." 

"What exactly are these for?" Alexis asked, looking at the device. 

"Years ago, there was a time when guards were attacked within the vicinity. It's been quiet for some time now, and we'd like to keep it that way." 

"Attacked by what?" 

Sarah's eyebrow raised, looking at Alexis expectantly. 

"Wait, are you telling us that the animatronics out on that showroom floor are alive?" Alexis asked. 

"That's impossible!" Mitch agreed, "My uncle worked with those things every day! There's no way for animatronics to be alive!" 

Sarah only shrugged, placing her baton back in her belt, "Suit yourselves." 

***

"Are you sure you're not hungry, Sarah?" Tori had pushed one of the large pizza pies toward her boss. 

"Not right now," the head of security answered, watching her charges eat, "You three eat as much as you like." 

Much like the rest of the restaurant, the main showroom was dimmed. The only lights that glowed were the staging lights, glowing on the three six-foot animatronics that stood motionlessly on the stage. It scared the newbies a bit with the way they looked out into the empty room, as if their eyes were watching, waiting for something to happen. 

Though the guards' conversations flittered out from topic to topic, the main focus seemed to be on the food Denise and the rest of the kitchen had provided for them. Three extra-large pizzas sat side by side on the table, each one covered with different toppings and cut into large triangular pieces. Chocolate and vanilla cupcakes sat on either side of said pizzas, designed to look like Toy Chica's cupcake that she held in her hand. Upon the first bite of hot gooey pizza, Alexis had instantly fallen in love. Her lips smacked together as she downed slice after slice, enjoying the taste of heavy sausage, melted mozzarella, and thick pizza crust. 

"Slow down, Alex!" Mitch laughed, "You'll give yourself a stomach ache with all that munching over there." 

"Sorry," the woman spoke around the pizza in her mouth, "It's just so good! I haven't had pizza like this since I was four!" 

Sarah laughed, "Been a while, huh?" 

When Alexis nodded, Sarah smiled, "Well, I'm glad you enjoy it. Make sure to tell Denise thank you when you guys come in tomorrow." 

"I was planning on writing a thank you note when I get done with my shift tonight," Mitch smiled, taking another bite. 

"You might not, most of the time the night guards crash by the end of their shifts." 

Before anyone could say anything more, the lights on the stage suddenly darkened. The room went black, making everyone nervous. Flashlight beacons erupted from the four night guards, each standing and shining the bright lights around the room. 

"I suppose this ends our dinner break, huh?" Mitch joked, looking around. 

"Not necessarily," Sarah turned to her charges, "Looks like a fuse must've blown. I'll go check it out." 

"And leave us here in the dark?" Tori's light visibly shook. 

"I promise it won't be long," Sarah reasoned, "The closest fuse box is down the hall in the spare parts room. I'll go fix the problem and return so quickly, you won't even realize I'm gone." 

"Can we come with you?" Alexis asked. 

"I'd rather you didn't. The Spare Parts room is messy and you could trip on cords or mechanical parts in there. I don't want you getting hurt, especially in the dark. Just stay here, finish up your dinner, and we'll go from there when I return." 

Without another word, Sarah disappeared down the long dark hallways, the trio watching after her as her light faded into the darkness. 

***

Keys clicked, permitting the head of security entry into the dark room. Light fell on old boxes, markings covering the cardboard to indicate what lay beneath. Costumed heads with lifeless eyes lined the shelving units on either side of the walls, each one watching as light footsteps entered the room. 

Sarah flashed her light around, checking every nook, watching and waiting for something to appear. Her other hand gripped the baton, ready to strike should anything that jumped out at her. A noise caused her to jump, whirling her body around as a mechanical arm rolled across the flooring. 

"Nothing, it's nothing," Sarah reassured herself, turning the light back towards the far edge of the room. 

A small rectangle sat on the wall, shining in the darkness as the light flashed on it's metallic exterior. A smaller rectangle that acted as the fuse box's door was slightly ajar, wiring creeping out like fingers. Sarah approached with caution, creaking the door open further to look at the damage. 

It appeared that several of the wiring had been pulled from their sockets as well as a few switches moved in their opposite directions of where they should have been pointing. 

Sarah turned to her radio, "Tori? Mitch? Alexis?" 

The radio static came in, making the head growl low, "Strike one." 

She moved the flashlight to her opposite shoulder, holding it steady with her head and freeing her hands to work on the fuse box. 

As Sarah grumbled to herself in the dark, she failed to notice a shape appear behind her, the shadow revealing a long snout and mouth full of razor sharp teeth. 

***

"What do you think is taking her so long?" Alexis asked, pacing between two tables towards the back of the main showroom. 

Tori had perched herself in one of the chairs close by while Mitch had focused his time looking at the main showroom, taking in the details as best as he could. 

"Probably more than a blown fuse," Mitch murmured in their direction, "These old buildings sometimes have a mind of their own." 

"That's as silly as Sarah saying the animatronics are alive," Alexis indicated to the darkened stage. 

"Well, I don't know about you," Tori spoke up, "but I'm beginning to wonder if we really should have taken those taser batons like Sarah suggested." 

"Are you afraid?" Alexis asked. 

Tori shrugged, "My memory still brings me back to that day I hid back on the stage. I act like it was no big deal, but in reality it scared me back then. Still does." 

"Why?" 

"Uh.. guys?" 

Tori ignored Mitch as she continued, "Well, I could have sworn I saw Toy Bonnie's head do a complete one-eighty in my direction, his green eyes just staring at me..." 

"Guys..." 

"If the animatronics bothered you so much, why did you come back so often?" Alexis asked. 

"It was my favorite restaurant. I stopped watching the animatronic performances after that though..." 

"GUYS!" 

The two girls glared at the back of Mitch's head before the third part turned toward them, his light flashing onto the stage, "Do you guys see what I see?" 

On the stage, Toy Bonnie and Toy Chica were still standing in their respected positions, still as statues. But Toy Freddy was gone. 

Alexis and Tori moved quickly toward Mitch as his light shifted between the two animatronics. 

"Where the hell did Freddy go?" 


	10. When I Come to Life, You Have no Place to Hide

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Where'd Toy Freddy go? Your guess is as good as mine. XD  
> Let's hope he's not too far away...
> 
> Edit: fixed spelling and grammatical errors

"We've got to find Toy Freddy before Sarah gets back and sees him gone," Mitch claimed, looking at his two counterparts. 

"Sure, but where could a six foot bear animatronic just up and disappear to?" Alexis asked. 

"Beats me, but he's got to be around here somewhere." 

"Well, then we should split up." 

"Split up?! Are you crazy?" Tori latched onto Mitch's arm, "Please don't let Alexis split us up! I don't want to go alone out there in the dark." 

"We'll cover more ground if we split up though, Tori," Alexis explained, "Besides, I highly doubt he went far. My biggest guess is that he's on the main stage still, maybe hiding behind the curtains." 

"Um, Alexis, I think I'm going to have to agree with Tori on this," Mitch butted in, "And the only reason is because Sarah wanted us to stay together. I'd rather we not split up to find an animatronic that may or may not still be in this room with us. Especially if he's moving on his own." 

Mitch had a point. 

Alexis thought, "Alright, We'll check the stages together, then we'll head into the arcade. He's got to be in one of those locations." 

The group nodded, turning toward the stage and climbing up. Alexis went to the left, peering between the colored curtains while Mitch did the same at the right. Tori went to the far back, shifting through the curtains. 

"Hey! The rules are no climbing on the stage!" 

Alexis froze, looking over to Tori, "Did you say that?" 

"No, did you?" 

"No. Mitch?" 

"Hey, my voice ain't that deep," the third guard spoke. 

"Well, come on," Alexis growled, "It had to be one of us, and it surely wasn't me." 

"It wasn't me!" Tori released the curtains, holding her hands up defensively. 

"Don't look at me," Mitch argued, "Like I said, I can't make my voice that deep." 

"No, but I can!" A loud screech followed as an animatronic bear's face appeared in front of Tori, causing the guard to scream and fall backwards, dropping her flashlight and landing on the ground hard as she moved away quickly from the animatronic. 

Mitch and Alexis screamed as they, too, jumped back, running into the backs of the other two animatronics. The sound of gears whirling caused the new guards to look up, the heads of Toy Chica and Toy Bonnie turning in their directions. 

"Hiya!" Toy Bonnie squeaked. 

All three guards let out more screams, Mitch and Tori dropping their flashlights as they bolted from the stage, jumping and landing roughly on the carpeted flooring. 

"Well, don't just stand there! Go get 'em!" Toy Freddy's voice boomed in the empty showroom as the three guards moved quickly in the darkness, disappearing around another curtain, holding their breaths as footsteps came by. 

"Well, where'd they go?" the squeaky voice of Toy Bonnie came. 

"T-Bone, that's like asking why we're stuck here day in and day out," a feminie voice spoke, which had to be Toy Chica. 

"Charlie, T-Bone, you two look in the arcade," Toy Freddy's voice spoke, "I'll let the others know we've got a few intruders in here. Freddy will most likely take delight in that, I'm sure." 

The guards listened as the footsteps vanished. 

"We've got to find Sarah and warn her," Tori whispered. 

"She probably already knows about them moving about," Mitch agreed. 

"Who already knows 'bout us movin' around 'ere?" an unfamiliar voice spoke from behind. 

All three stilled, Tori looking over at Mitch and Alexis, "Um... which curtain was it that Sarah said this led to again?" 

"This be me Pirate's Cove," the gruff voice spoke again, anger laced in the heavy accent, "and who be ye?" 

All three slowly turned to stare up at the animatronic who stood behind them. Foxy the Pirate was bigger than they expected him to be, his arms crossed over his animatronic chest and yellow eyes blazing like twin fires in the darkness of Pirate's Cove. 

"I asked ye a question," The fox growled, pointing his sharp hook at them, "Who be ye?!" 

"Nope! Not today Foxy!" Mitch bolted from the curtains, Alexis and Tori following behind him. They didn't get far as all three slammed into yet another animatronic, this one much larger than the previous ones. Glowing blue eyes peered down at them from behind a large brown snout. Small brown ears flicked as the mouth of the original Freddy Fazbear opened, grinning wickedly, "Well, well... what do we have here?" 

The trio took off, running as fast as they could down the darkened hallway. They could feel the floor quake from the animatronics as they moved through the hallways, hot on their heels. 

"Foxy! Cut them off!" Alexis heard Freddy's voice shout, the red pirate fox suddenly moving at a lightning speed. 

"What are we going to do?!" Tori cried, "They're going to catch us!" 

"No they won't! Get in Sarah's office!" Mitch shouted, maneuvering his body toward the empty office spaces. 

Foxy slid by as the three made the sharp turn, heading for the open office doors, the fox's open maw of sharp teeth missing them by mere inches. 

Once in the confines of the office, Mitch slammed the door shut, causing the metal framing to connect with Bonnie's face. They could hear the rabbit howl in pain, his foot stomping against the tiled flooring. 

"That hurt! What the pizza slices!" 

"Pizza slices?" Alexis raised a brow at Mitch, who could only shrug. 

A heavy fist slammed against the window beside the door, an angry looking bear peering inside. 

"You think you're safe in there, huh? Well, there's more than one way to skin a cat!" 

Footsteps came running toward them in the opposite direction. Mitch poked his head out, his eyes bulging from his sockets before swiftly closing the other door as Foxy met the metal framing once again. 

"That was close," Alexis breathed. 

"Too close," Mitch agreed, falling into a chair. 

"Um, guys," Tori looked at her coworkers, "not to break our moment of relief, but I think we have a problem." 

"We can clearly see it," Alexis said, "We're trapped in an office with a bunch of animatronics outside both doorways." 

"That's not the problem I'm referring to." 

Tori pointed to the back of the room, where a large clock sat. But it wasn't a clock, it looked like a percentage timer, the numbers dropping rapidly from 100% to 90% and so forth. 

"Oh great, don't tell me this room has limited power usage..." 

Alexis switched her radio on, "Sarah! Sarah!" 

_ "Good heavens Alexis! I was trying to get a hold of you three!"  _ the friendly voice of the head of security came through loud and clear,  _ "What did I tell you about keeping your radios on?"  _

"We're sorry, Sarah! But please help us! The showroom animatronics are after us! We're trapped in your office!" 

_ "What?"  _ Sarah's voice turned concerned,  _ "You're trapped in my office!? All of you?!"  _

"Yes! Please help us!" 

_ "Alright, hang tight! I'm on my way!"  _ The line went dead as Sarah's voice was cut. 

"How long do you think we can keep them out?" Alexis turned to Mitch. 

Mitch looked up at the percentage, steadying itself around 75%. 

"My guess would be maybe twenty minutes." 

A loud crack echoed from outside the right door. 

"Make that maybe fifteen minutes," Mitch gulped as the percentage dropped to 67%. 

*** 

Sarah pushed the final switch, the lights switching back on once again as she turned her flashlight off. 

"Honestly, you two are worse than Freddy," Sarah's attention turned toward the two animatronics that stood side by side with her in the Spare parts room, shifting uneasily. 

"You have to admit though, it was pretty clever," one of the animatronics spoke, her ears perking up with hope. 

"Still, Justice, that doesn't give you nor anyone else any right to mess with this equipment," Sarah scolded the pink and white pirate fox, "I've already got enough on my plate with the repairs needed for Fredbear, I don't need another animatronic getting broken." 

"Sorry," Justice's ears fell back against her head, lowering it in disappointment. 

The head of security came forward, patting the animatronic on the head, "I'm just disappointed, Justice. Don't beat yourself up. Besides, it was a perfect opportunity for the others to meet the rest of the gang." 

"Others?" 

A loud laugh erupted from the shorter animatronic, his hand covering his smile that was permanently attached to his face. 

"That's right, BB. Come on, I think I've let them suffer in that office long enough." 


	11. Friendly Acquaintances?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heh... how about another two chapters? Also, thank you readers for your support! I love seeing how many people are reading this story!
> 
> Edit: fixed spelling and grammatical errors

"How much longer do you think we can hold out?" 

"Tori! This is the fifth time that you've asked this question!" 

The trio were on defense as the power in the room was beginning to drop to the dangerous levels of 40%. Thankfully, they seemed to have figured out a system to keep the power from dropping any lower than it already had. They shifted from door to door to watch, waiting and listening to hear when the animatronics were coming closer. There was also an old security system that was still connected to all the cameras in the building, including areas that the guards hadn't seen before. 

From what they gathered, Toy Bonnie and the original Bonnie appeared on the left side, peering in before they would attempt to attack. Toy Chica and the original Chica would appear on the right, doing the same thing. A quick switch on of the lights outside the doors could indicate if they were there or not. Foxy always ran from the end of the hall to the left door, allowing the guards to see when he was getting ready to sprint down the hall and when to shut the door to keep him from entering by the old security system. Toy Freddy was above them in the ventilation system, making enough noise to alert them when he was close. A quick flashing of light at the animatronic bear kept him from coming too close to the entrance to the ventilation, shutting him down for a short time. 

Now, the original Freddy was a bit more problematic. 

He would appear in random locations on the security system, sometimes staring at the camera with black soulless eyes. When he would start laughing, the trio had to slam the right door shut before the room shook from the impact the bear's body when it collided with the metal door. 

Alexis stood on the chair, flickering the flashlight as Toy Freddy backed up again, turning to look at Tori, "Stop looking at the power meter, Tori. It won't do us any good with you constantly asking and not paying attention!" 

"I am too paying attention!" the door slammed shut as the sound of Foxy colliding with the door again echoed in the room, "Cause if I wasn't , Foxy would've had us just then." 

Mitch rolled his eyes, turning back to the camera before slamming the door down as Freddy's body collided with the door once again. 

The bear's face came into view at the window, anger covering his grizzly features, "I'm going to give you all five seconds to open this door." 

"And if we don't?" Alexis snarked. 

"You'd never make it to six am, that's for sure," the bear grinned, disappearing down the hall. 

All three looked at each other, eyes widening at the bear's words. 

"Six am?!?" Tori squeaked, "What the hell does he mean by that?!" 

"Guys!" Sarah's face appeared by the left door, her face covered with relief. 

"Sarah!" Tori released the door, allowing the head to come in. 

The head of security embraced her charges, looking over each of them, "Are you three alright?" 

"We're fine-" Alexis' eyes widened, "Sarah! Behind you!" 

The head moved quickly, her hand flicking the baton out and flashing it as Foxy appeared, skidding to a stop with both hands up in the air. 

"Woah lass! It's me!" the pirate spoke. 

Sarah let out a huge sigh of relief, switching the baton off before going to embrace the red fox to the surprise of her charges. 

"Glad to see you still in one piece, there old fox," Sarah laughed, scratching the top of his head. 

"Aye, lass. I'm surprised ta see ya here! We seen these scallywags roamin' the halls an' thought the worst had happen'," the fox spoke, indicating to the trio behind Sarah. 

"I'll explain later," Sarah spoke, "First I need to know where Freddy is." 

Heavy footsteps came from the right side as the bear appeared, pouncing into the room. Tori, Alexis, and Mitch scrambled away from the bear's path before he collided with the head of security, taking Sarah into the hallways on the left side. 

Loud crashing followed, Foxy ducking his head into his hands while his tail wrapped around his feet, wincing at what he must've witnessed. 

"Ouch!" Mitch's face scrunched, "That' must've hurt." 

"Certainly sounded like it," Alexis agreed, poking her head out from behind Sarah's desk, Tori following shortly after. 

Above, the ventilation shaft opened, Toy Freddy's head appearing from above the security office, "What happened? Did we get them?" 

"Get out of there, Fredrick," Foxy told the bear, "Our fun's over. Sarah apparently knows these three." 

"What?" Bonnie and Toy Bonnie appeared then, followed by Toy Chica and Chica. 

"Apparently so, I have no idea how though," the red fox shrugged. 

Another fox appeared, her pink and white fur shifting as she returned to her standing position, joining the crowd in the security office, "Everything alright, Foxy? I heard a loud crash..." 

"Freddy just took Sarah for a trip from one side of the room to the other, Justice," the fox spoke to his counterpart, turning to look toward Sarah and Freddy had landed. All heads turned to look out the door into the hallway. 

Freddy had landed on top of Sarah, the security guard stuck in a small pile of rubble. Though she didn't seem to notice, her fingers too busy scratching the animtronic's head in her hands as the bear let out happy growls, his foot pounding into the floor making it shake slightly under the impact. 

"You silly bear, you almost got me killed!" Sarah laughed, Freddy's eyes rolling to the back of his head from being scratched. 

"N-N-Not m-my f-f-fault," the bear attempted to speak, his tongue lolling out of his mouth from the pleasure, "H-H-Had t-to t-t-take c-care of s-s-s-some b-brats..." 

"Speaking of which," Sarah stopped, Freddy's head falling forward to land on her side, "Those three are not brats. They're my replacements." 

*** 

Alexis rubbed her temples before turning to her boss, "Please, Sarah, I get that this is all new to us, but explain how these things are alive!" 

"Watch your mouth, young lady," Toy Freddy, or Fredrick as Foxy called him, spoke, "You have no right to be speaking to Sarah like that." 

The animatronics, plus the guards, had moved into the main showroom, as the area was perfect for eight monstrous beings and five shorter humans, if you counted Balloon Boy as part human. The Toys, Justice included, had perched up on the main stage with the originals standing nearby, while the guards sat in chairs at the front table where they had been eating dinner. Sarah, after being attacked unintentionally by Freddy, had run up an appetite and helped herself to the remainder of the pizza. 

It seemed to come as no surprise to the head of security as the trio obviously had questions regarding the recent discovery of moving, walking, talking animatronics after hours. Sarah took a gulp of soda before speaking, "But would you believe me if I tried to explain everything? You didn't believe me when I gave you each a fair warning before hand." 

"Well, how were we supposed to know that they were alive?" Mitch asked. 

"Do you honestly expect me to come out and say, 'Oh, by the way, the animatronics come to life every night and they might try to attack you because they don't know all the staff well'?" Sarah shook her head, "I tried that the first time, and he didn't believe me." 

"Until he saw with his own two eyes," Toy Chica, known as Charlie, spoke, "We gave him a run for his money that night!" 

"You guys did the same for us..." Tori muttered, "I'm surprised we're still alive." 

"As am I," Sarah set her empty plate aside, folding her hands before resting her chin on them, "I warned you to be careful. I'm also disappointed that you didn't follow my directions." 

"How could we? We were being chased all over the building!" 

"Regardless," Sarah held up the flashlights and radios, "these items are to be used, not as decorations on your body. You three at least used the flashlights to your abilities, but the radios are also to be used. If something like this were to happen again, and I wasn't here, you three could have been seriously injured or killed." 

As the trio sunk in the scolding, the head turned to the animatronics, "As for the rest of you, what have I told you about startling newbies?" 

"I thought they were intruders," Fredrick piped up. 

"You all know there's a very very small chance of anyone breaking in here. You also know those security features are made for one animatronic in particular." 

As the robots shifted amongst themselves, Sarah turned back to her charges, "As much as I'm disappointed, I still think having you three replace me may be the best option we have currently." 

"I guess I don't see why Ashford wants to replace you," Alexis answered, "I mean, other than him and you not seeing eye to eye on some things." 

"My health hasn't been the greatest in the past couple of years," Sarah explained, "I... I had an encounter a long time ago that caused my health to decline rapidly when I was in my late twenties, early thirties. Since my fortieth birthday, my heart has been having a few minor complications, which has caused Fazbear Entertainment to become worried about my job performance. I, personally, haven't seen any issues since my latest check-up, but the company is concerned and has decided, along with Ashford, that the need for a new night guard is needed." 

"So, it's more of a safety issue than anything else?" 

"Mostly, though... as of now, I really can't retire, nor could I afford to." 

"Why?" 

Sarah scratched her chin, lost in thought. To Alexis, it seemed as if she was trying to find a way to explain everything so she and the others could understand. 

"Let's just say," Bonnie spoke up, causing the humans to turn toward him, "Sarah made us a promise a long time ago." 

"What kind of promise?" Mitch asked. 

"Just a promise, nothing you three should concern yourselves with," Sarah stood then, willing to put the conversation to an end, "Now, I think I should properly introduce you three to the puppet. I have no doubt that he must've heard all the racket from earlier and is fairly interested in what's going on." 


	12. Connections

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next chapter for the day. Please enjoy and comments and kudos are always welcomed!
> 
> Edit: fixed spelling and grammatical errors

The Marionette's box was still sitting where it had been when Sarah had first introduced the new guards to the device. However, soft music seemed to be playing continuously from somewhere around it, making Tori question the reasoning behind it. 

"The guards used to have to wind up the box remotely to keep the puppet from appearing," Sarah explained, "After I became the guard, I set up an automatic system to keep the puppet asleep. Of all the animatronics, he's the most sensitive, which is why he sleeps a lot." 

"I didn't think animatronics could be sensitive," Tori answered. 

"He is," Chica explained from behind the group, "It's just the way he was created." 

Sarah crouched behind the box, turning a knob as the music slowed before coming to a halt completely. She stood, tapping on the box, whispering, "Puppet?" 

To the guards' surprise, the lid of the large present-like box opened as long black fingers appeared, pulling a strange creature up from deep in the box. 

It wore a black jumpsuit with black and white stripes running from it's elbows to it's wrists, two large white buttons sat on it's thin chest, the top button stopping just where the collar bone may have been. It wore a white mask, painted to look like a happy face with two thick purple lines running vertically, one below each black eye and stopping at the top of it's big black gaping mouth. 

The creature turned to Sarah, a quiet deep voice speaking, "Sarah! What a pleasant surprise! Do you have any idea what time it is though?" 

"It's one-thirty, Puppet," Sarah smiled, "which leaves me another four and a half hours with you all." 

"That time already? I'm surprised," the animatronic turned, looking at the three new guards with equal surprise, "I take it we have intruders?" 

"No, Puppet. This is Tori Green, Alexis Silverstein, and Mitch Inta. I've decided to make them my replacements once my work here in the pizzaria is finished." 

"Ah," the marionette took one long hand, beckoning the guards closer. 

All three came to the puppet as if in a trance as he spoke again, "Which one of you is Miss Green?" 

Tori's voice shook, "I am." 

"Give me your hands, child." 

Tori looked uncertain between the animatronic and Sarah, who nodded. Tori took the puppet's hands, his fingers enclosing hers nearly completely as his eyes closed. 

"I see happiness, a child-like personality," Puppet spoke, "I also see many memories of us. You've been here on numerous occasions as a child, correct?" 

"Yes, how did you know?" 

"I have what some would call 'the sight,'" Puppet answered, "I see events of childhood, whether the person who is connected to me is still a child or an adult. Childhood is the beginning of each individual's life line - it can determine one's fate based on their actions and responses during this point in their life. I can tell you are quite adventurous, though you have an undertone of fear of us. Why?" 

"I-I saw something that scared me as a child." 

"Hmm..." the puppet hummed quietly before placing both hands in one and patting the tops in comfort, "Perhaps you may need to relearn what it meant to be imaginative. I see a fear specifically of Bonnie, perhaps you should get to know him and T-Bone a bit before passing judgement." 

The puppet released Tori's hands, allowing her to fall back to the animatronics. Alexis noticed she had specifically stood beside Toy Bonnie, looking up as the animatronic set a hand on her shoulder in comfort. 

"Now, you must be Mitch," Puppet's voice brought Alexis back as she turned to see the long black fingers point to Mitch. 

"Yep," the male spoke, stepping forward and offering his hands to the puppet. 

Long black fingers encased Mitch's hands as a chuckle broke from the puppet's voice, "I see family, a connection that ties us all together. I sense electricity running through your veins... you come from a family of mechanics, yes?" 

"Both my father and my uncle were," Mitch agreed. 

"I also see many images of our Funtimes, the clown-painted animatronics." 

Mitch nodded, "My uncle worked at the sister location for many years." 

"I see... so you have the child-like joy of curiosity, much like our own Sarah has." 

"Is that good?" 

"Very. It is the reason why some of us are attached to her, though I see working is a large part of your life. You know the ins and outs of us, from our endoskeletons to the very wiring of our souls. Though, I'd recommend taking the time to indulge in yourself. Others may want you for your work, not necessarily for you. Take caution." 

"I will," Mitch promised as the animatronic released his hands. 

"Now then," Puppet beckoned Alexis closer, "I don't recall seeing you here before, though the name sounds familiar..." 

When Alexis set her hands in the puppet's, she felt a jolt of energy run through her. Memories of a childhood long gone came flying forward, causing her to gasp loudly and tears to spring from her eyes. 

"I see no childhood," Puppet's voice sounded faded and saddened, "I see no fun, no play... I can't even sense a time when she was truly happy..." 

"She's not a lost cause, though Puppet," Sarah's voice came, "I think it may be the way her family shaped her." 

More memories came flying forward, some of her mother, some of her father. Alexis cringed slightly at the ones of the fighting and arguing, the ones where paperwork and journals regarding Freddy Fazbear's littered countertops and tables. The obsession that slowly became a part of her life... 

The memories were cut suddenly as Puppet pulled his hands away from hers, looking at Alexis with curiosity. 

"Alexis?" Sarah came around, resting a hand on the woman's shoulders. Alexis, to the surprise of both herself and Sarah, wrapped her arms around the elder woman, embracing in a long needed sense of comfort. 

"You are the one who has become lost," the puppet spoke after a while, watching the scene before him, "Your family has brought about a shame on themselves, as well as this restaurant..." 

"Please don't resent her, Puppet," Sarah's voice was clear and hard. 

"I see no reason to," the animatronic replied, "I see pain and agony in her spirit... she needs acceptance from her family, or wants it at least." 

Alexis shook slightly in the head of security's arms, the elder woman pressing a hand to her hair in comfort, "Is there anything I can do for her?" 

"I'm afraid not. Until she finds herself a way out of this darkened path she has found herself on, she will be like how our Funtime Foxy was before she was reborn." 


	13. Connections Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have another chapter before I vanish for a few days again. Enjoy!

"Wow... I never knew you had it that bad," Mitch's shoulders were slumped, looking at Alexis as she looked down at her hands. 

The animatronics, upon hearing what the marionette had said about Alexis, were curious about the young guard. The young woman, suddenly overwhelmed by everything she had experienced, spoke about the truth regarding her family's connection with Freddy Fazbear's.

The toys, thankfully, were at least understanding, Charlie coming around to pull Alexis into a hug.

"It still irks me that people still hang onto those accidents," Bonnie growled, "Not the company's fault that there was a lunatic that worked here."

"So the stories are true then," Tori piped up, her eyes wide as she fiddled with her glasses, "About the disappearances?"

"And we'll cut that conversation to a stop right now," Sarah spoke, eyes narrowing, "Tori, we need to focus on helping Alexis right now."

"I don't think there's much you can do to help me," the mentioned guard spoke from Toy Chica's arms.

"Of course there is," the yellow bird spoke, pressing her beak to kiss the woman on the head, "Heck, it's our jobs to make people smile and laugh! And I know just the thing that might help!"

Alexis almost tipped over as Charlie scurried into the kitchen, Chica following close behind her counterpart.

"What are they doing?" Mitch looked to Sarah, who could only shrug as everyone heard sounds erupt from the kitchen.

"Sounds ta me like the lassea ar' makin' up somethin'," Foxy's ear twitched, "An' knowin' those two, be prepared fer sweets galore."

"Foxy, be nice," Justice nudged her counterpart, "They haven't been in the kitchen to make something since Sarah first started here."

"That true too?" Tori asked.

"That is," Sarah admitted, "Charlie and Chica were the ones who fed me during my time as a night maintenance worker. Only because they saw me as someone who they trusted."

"Not all of us did though," Freddy grumbled under his breath before turning back to the head of security, "How long did you know that Miss Alexis was tied to the family that wants our home shut down?"

"Freddy, I knew about it this afternoon. I didn't get a chance because of your little incident this evening - speaking of which," Sarah turned to the trio, "Since I now have an incident report to file as well as alert the company about our little hallway's mess, take this time to get to know the animatronics. You can only talk to them after hours, so use this time wisely."

"You're just going to leave us then? Again?" Mitch stood, "What if they try to attack us again?"

"I highly doubt it, since Puppet's already given his approval on you three. I think the biggest problem you'll have is worrying about how big of a mess Chica and Charlie make in the kitchen."

*** 

The two animatronic chickens came out a few moments later with trays of hot cocoa for the night guards and oven-baked cookies.

"Chocolate always helps, dear," Chica patted Alexis' cheek like a loving aunt, handing her a large mug and equally large chocolate chip cookie. The guards spoke their thanks, taking sips of the warm drinks and biting into the soft but crisp cookies.

Chica disappeared down the hall to deliver the last cup and cookie to Sarah, Mitch watching after her before turning to Charlie, "How do you guys know how to cook anyway?"

"Just... something we picked up over the years," Charlie smiled sheepishly, "I like to watch the kitchen staff from time to time. The head of the kitchen once said that if I could still move around, she'd want me to help in the kitchen."

"You used to come off the stage?" Alexis asked in surprised.

"Yes, we all did," Bonnie grinned, before his smile fell, "That was... until those accidents happened."

"I know Sarah doesn't want to discuss it," Mitch said, "but I am curious about her - connections if you will - between all of you, especially with Freddy."

"We've always seen 'er as a sister of sorts," Foxy explained, "She was there when them problems occured, an' she was ther' when we were rebuilt."

"How old was she when you first encountered her?"

"That 'ad ta be back in '87," the fox rubbed his chin with his hook, "Only a child the lass was... quite adventurous too, I reckon..."

"Is that why you connected with her? Because you remembered her?"

"Took a bit of time," Bonnie shrugged, "We hadn't seen her since she was seven, and children grow up so fast that it's hard to remember them when you've only seen them once."

"Us toys didn't come into the picture until much later," T-Bone spoke, pointing to himself and the others, "We only met her the first time when Sarah came through a third party company to repair the originals."

"Gave her quite a scare too, I recall," Fredrick chuckled darkly.

"I'd like to hear that story," Alexis smiled.

"'Fraid that's one ya hav' ta ask her 'bout tha'," Foxy smirked, "Tha' woman be keepin' secrets 'til she's dead."

"And what about you guys?" Alexis countered, "How are you all alive? I mean, I can see we all thought you guys were just animatronics..."

"Ah, now there's a story to be telling in the dark," Justice chuckled, "And it does tie into the rumors about this place."

"How so?"

"Well," Bonnie scratched one of his long ears in thought, "I suppose you could say that everything you hear about this place is true. Everything from the disappearances of ten children, us animatronics moving after hours... all of it. Though it wasn't what most people thought.

"You see, there's a reason why we can move. It started back in '87 when a child was lured away by a staff member wearing another animatronic suit. Now, there had already been five other disappearances that happened, which made the company very weary about it happening again. You could say something in our systems snapped and kept another child from disappearing completely."

"An' Freddy was mad about the whole ordeal," Foxy continued, "He wasn' gonna let the scallywag git away wit' it either. Called on each of us to help track the man down."

"Did you figure out who it was?" Tori asked, fully entranced by what the animatronics were saying.

"Indeed," Bonnie answered, "Cornered him. Thankfully, we had additional help that night, as that monster took an axe to Foxy, Chica, Freddy, and I. The toy animatronics were still being prepared to take our place on the stage, so Puppet alerted them of what was going and sent them after the man."

"He didn't get far," Fredrick growled, "We almost had him too, if it wasn't for that damned suit..."

"What suit?" Mitch asked.

"There were two suits that were both dubbed as animatronics and costumes that the company used back in '83," Bonnie explained, "They were retired due to problems that caused serious injury to the workers who wore them. I heard that at least one worker of Fazbear Entertainment actually died in the safe room attempting to get the costume off."

"And this guy decided to hop into one of these killer suits?" Alexis asked.

"Pretty much, didn't stand a chance against the spring locks," Charlie nodded.

"We decided to leave him there to rot," T-Bone answered, "We all made a vow never to speak of that man again, nor would we allow anyone get close to the robotic costume that was currently holding him hostage."

All was quiet before Alexis asked, "Does Sarah know about this?"

"Aye, the lass does," Foxy answered, "She even knows which animatronic the scallywag is in and hates it as much as we do."

"What about the other five missing kids?" Mitch asked, "You said ten had gone, and we know the first five happened before one child was saved."

"The other five disappeared the same day we snuffed the light out of Silver Eyes," T-Bone explained, "We believe he knew what the originals were plotting and had prepared for the worst, but even he couldn't run from his fate that he had created."

"Silver Eyes?"

"It's what we call him," Charlie answered, "We also call him, 'He who walks in purple.'"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just in case there's confusion on the Animatronics:  
> Freddy=Freddy  
> Bonnie=Bonnie  
> Chica=Chica  
> Foxy=Foxy
> 
> Toy Freddy = Fredrick   
> Toy Bonnie = T-Bone  
> Toy Chica=Charlie  
> Mangle=Justice
> 
> *Only because it would've been too confusing


	14. The First Clues

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Greetings from the Fazbear Pizzeria!  
> I finished this one up this morning,but didn't have a chance to post it till now. Please enjoy, my lovely readers! :)

"Why those names?" Tori asked.

Charlie looked at her counterparts, "I gave him the name 'Silver eyes' because it was the color of them that I remember seeing from a long time ago, in another life."

"Our memories are entwined with the ones the missing children gave us," Justice explained, "They tell us what they remember and we enact on those memories."

"Similar to if someone told you about a bad experience," T-Bone spoke, "If a friend told you about a bad experience at, say, an amusement park, you wouldn't want to go there based on the testimony of your friend, right?"

"Right," the guards spoke in unison.

"And that's why we also attacked the guards," Fredrick spoke, "Some of the missing children told us that the last thing they saw was a shade of purple, hence the name 'He who Walks in Purple'."

"But don't the maintenance staff also wear purple jumpsuits?" Mitch pointed out, "My uncle was forced to wear it with the company logo when he worked at the sister location."

"That is true, too," Bonnie answered, "At the time, the children thought it may have been a guard, which is why we attacked them first, plus they were easy targets, especially the night guards."

"How many, um... died?" Tori asked.

The animatronics looked at one another, glowing eyes flicked from one to the other.

"We're... not entirely sure, lass," Foxy admitted, "We 'ad done it so many times before Sarah tha' we 'ad lost count ta how many actually survived."

"Many of them, if they did survive, never returned the following night, so we assumed we had killed them," Fredrick bowed his head.

"Do you feel remorse at least?" Alexis asked, leaning forward.

"At the time we did it," Charlie sighed, "it made us feel relieved. It was something the children wanted us to do, it was all we knew for the longest time. But that changed."

"Why didn't you kill Sarah?" Mitch asked.

"We wanted ta, at the time," Foxy replied, "But, old Balloon Boy here, pointed out the changes done on Bonnie an' Chica. It was Capt'n Freddy's call to test her skills."

"She had repaired them at some point during the day, thus Freddy gave her a challenge," Justice explained, "Fix me by five, or die."

"Apparently, she succeeded," Alexis smiled.

"Yes, and gave me a new name too, that night!" Justice smiled, twirling on one foot, "I never had to worry about becoming a "take-apart-put-together" attraction for the kids anymore!"

"And, ever since, we've seen Sarah as family," Bonnie chuckled, "Even the ghost children saw her as a 'sister,' you might say."

The three guards looked at one another before Alexis' eyes narrowed, "You said, ghost children, Bonnie. Not missing..."

"Nice goin', mate," Foxy nudged Bonnie with his elbow, "Now we hav' ta explain in detail."

"No we don't," Justice interrupted, "Besides, that's saved for a later night, anyway."

"What do you mean?" Mitch asked.

"When the company told Sarah about going into retirement, she agreed on the condition that any potential new night guard would have to undergo a test called the "Five Nights at Freddy's" test."

"Yes, Ashford mentioned it," Mitch continued.

"Well, we all had discussed on how the best way to approach the topic regarding the truth behind the rumors here at the restaurant. The best option, and the safest in my opinion, was to tell the story about what really happened on the fourth night, after Sarah was convinced the potential night guard would stay with the company."

"So, you're telling us that we have to wait until the fourth night working here before we find out anything?" Alexis groaned.

"Pretty much, lass," Foxy grinned, "Ye up fer the challenge?"

***

Sarah stuck her head around the corner as laughter filled the room. It amazed her how quickly the new guards had taken to liking the animatronics and vice versa. 

"Takes one to know one, eh?" Freddy's voice came from behind her, the elder looking up her animatronic friend.

"I guess, old bear. I'm happy to see them having at least some company other than me or themselves. It's been too long since I've last seen them smile like this."

"I agree," the animatronic bear pressed his nose to the back of the elder guard's head, a soft squeak coming from the black rubber, "Though, it will be heartbreaking if we leave."

"When, Freddy, not if."

"When then."

Sarah nodded before turning to her watch -  _ 5:50. _

The guard came out of the shadows, clapping her hands together, "Alright guys, time's almost up. Back to your stages."

The trio watched as each animatronic stood, moving toward their respectful homes at a slow pace. T-Bonnie leaned down by Tori, pulling the small guard into a big bunny hug, before releasing her and climbing back onto the main stage.

"What was that about?" Alexis asked.

"I have no idea," Tori shrugged her shoulders.

"You do," Sarah approached them, "You've made a connection with Toy Bonnie, Tori. He trusts you, like Freddy trusts me."

"Do all the animatronics make a connection with a night guard?" Mitch asked.

"Eventually, I hope."

The sound of whirling gears brought the small groups' gaze to the main stage, the animatronics shifting before stopping completely, still as stone. More whirling followed behind the side stage curtains, the guards knowing full well that the original animatronics had settled in.

Sarah smiled, whispering, "Good night, guys. See you tomorrow night."

***

Sarah escorted the trio back to the office, where she collapsed in her chair, sighing heavily.

"Sarah? You alright?" Alexis asked, sitting down in one of the chairs before the desk as the others followed suit.

"Hm? Oh, yes, sometimes keeping up with those animatronics in the evening takes a bit out of me," Sarah answered, sitting up and rolling up her work sleeves.

"Sarah! Your arms!" Mitch pointed.

Long criss-cross patterns, similar to the shape of lighting bolts, were embedded into the head of security's forearms, disappearing up into the fabric. They were nearly invisible on the contrast of the white skin, but pale enough for someone to notice.

Sarah looked down, pulling one arm out for the trio to see, "Oh, these? Old scars from back in the day."

"Do they hurt? They look like they do," Tori said, tracing one with her finger.

"Did back then," Sarah chuckled, "One of the reasons why you don't play with those batons. But, on to more important things."

The head leaned forward in her desk, "I know last night was a bit of a shock for you all. Typically, the newbies run out the door as soon as the locks release themselves, so I'm surprised you three didn't scooch out of here when they released. Am I taking this as a positive note that you'll be back this evening?"

"I would like to," Alexis answered in her chair.

"Same here," Tori agreed.

"Ditto," Mitch smiled.

"Alright, then," Sarah smiled, "Tomorrow night, just forewarning, I may or may not be in the building, as I have an important security meeting at our sister location that requires my undivided attention. With that in mind, the goal for you three tomorrow is to continue to work with animatronics. I want a tight bond formed between the three of you and them, as well as for you to gain their trust."

Sarah turned toward Alexis, specifically, "Follow Puppet's advice, he is quite wise and knows what is needed."

"Speaking of which, how was he able to do that? Pull those memories out of my mind like that?" Alexis asked.

"He did it to you too?" Mitch was surprised.

"He did the same to me as well," Tori agreed.

"It's just something he does," Sarah shrugged, "Even I'm not sure how he does it. From my guess, it's because he's always watching, as well as being the eldest of the animatronics. He sees and knows all. Hell, I'd trust him again and again if I was placed in a harmful situation. I'd trust any of them..."

"Great, one animatronic is psychic," Alexis grumbled, "Anything else we should know?"

"Don't order the Fazbear pizza. It takes forever to cook."


	15. Final Clues

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good Morning, my lovelies!  
> So, quite an intake in the last chapter, huh? Let's see what happens next :)

The sunlight was blinding as the night guards exited the building just as a car rolled into the parking lot. Maxwell's familiar head popped out from the driver's side, the second in command practically bouncing from his car to greet his coworkers.

"Hey guys! I see you survived last night!" Maxwell grinned, approaching the small group.

"Yeah, we appreciated the warning," Tori growled, her arms crossing over her chest.

"Fireball, ain't she?" Maxwell winked at Alexis.

"Maxwell, now's not the time for jokes," Sarah placed her hands on her hips, her eyes narrowing at the guard, "These three went through the ringer last night, they need to go home and get some decent sleep. You, on the other hand, need to help me sort a few things out before my meeting today."

"Shit, I forgot about that," Maxwell scratched the back of his head, "Sorry, Sarah."

"Not a problem, now come on in. I'd like to get this sorted out before nine," the head held the doors to the restaurant open, allowing her second to enter the building before turning to the trio, "Don't forget to be here by six this evening."

"Will do!" the trio answered before the doors were closed and locked, a huge difference from the loud clanking of the metallic security system within the confines of the restaurant.

As the three walked to their respected transportation, Mitch stretched his arms above his head, "I don't know about you girls, but I think I'm going to head on home, play on the xbox for a bit, then hit the hay."

"I might make a cup of tea and read before getting a bit of shut eye myself," Tori smiled, "I found this really cool article about another restaurant similar to Freddy's that went out of business when I was still in grade school."

"What about you, Alexis?" Mitch asked.

Alexis stopped in her tracks before replying, "I think I want to dig up some more information about those missing kids."

"This again?" Mitch groaned, slapping his forehead, "And here I thought you decided to give up on your obsession with it."

"I'm not obsessed, I just think it's a little weird that those animatronics in there act like humans after hours. And what about that child that was found? Maybe they're still alive and could tell about their experiences with that man who lured them away."

"Is this for fame?" Tori asked, "Or are you wanting to actually help someone?"

"I want to help Sarah. She made some sort of promise to the animatronics that she's obviously having trouble keeping. If I can find out what happened-"

"You might be able to find a way to help Sarah keep this promise," Mitch connected the two together.

"Exactly. But I need to know the details of everything that happened leading up to now."

"Well. It may be a shot in the dark, but I did a report back in high school about the strange occurrences surrounding Freddy Fazbear's," Tori claimed, "I may still have some information and my powerpoint in Google cloud if you want to look at it."

"Sure!" Alexis smiled.

"I'll give my uncle a call too," Mitch agreed, "He may know something about the animatronics design that I might know about."

"Alright," Alexis pulled out a piece of paper, tearing the small sheet into two pieces before writing a number down. She handed the two pieces to her new coworkers, "Here's my number if you find anything."

***

Alexis opened the door to her apartment, the dingy small area smelt of old paper and dirt. Files piled on the table, papers scattered everywhere she turned. Alexis set her bag down by the doorway, scooping up some of the fallen sheets as she headed into her kitchen area to make a cup of coffee.

After last night's events, she needed as much caffeine as she could get her hands on.

Once the pot was on and brewing, Alexis picked the heavy files up, placing them on the counter stack by stack. She began to organize them back onto the table once they had been removed, starting with the file marked "Fredbear's - 1983." Cup in hand, Alexis filtered through the files, jotting notes down as she went:

_ -Fredbear's Family Diner: Opened August 1983 _

_ -First killing: October 1983 _

__ _ \- Seven-year-old boy _

__ _ \- Placed in head first into the Fredbear animatronic _

__ _ \- Killed via "Bite" - Severe skull fracture and brain damage _

Alexis stopped and took a sip of coffee before closing the file and setting it to the side. She pulled the next one off her small stack - this one labeled "Fazbear's: '84 - '87":

_ -Fredbear's closes November 1983 _

_ -Freddy Fazbear's Pizza: Opens February 1984 _

_ -Four Disappearances (1984 to 1986) _

__ _ \- Seen by witnesses following Animatronic Character _

_ -Found Child (?) _

Alexis tapped her paper, digging through the file for anything that would indicate a date. Surprisingly, she had nothing about a child who had survived and was found safely. Alexis scratched her head, standing and getting her laptop. 

Searches pulled up nothing but advertisements for the upcoming fiftieth anniversary and special showtimes for that weekend. The woman growled to herself, trying a different search.

_ "Freddy Fazbear's"  _ \- No results; only advertisements.

_ "Bite of '87 - Freddy Fazbear"  _ \- Results she already knew of.

_ "Children found in Freddy's"  _ \- One result.

Alexis clicked on the link, surprised to see a small article from the very town she was currently living in.

The headline read  _ "Fazbear Fright: Child found after Mysterious Black Out at Local Restaurant" _ \- A good indication of what Alexis was about to read was true.

_ "Visitors at the local Freddy Fazbear's Pizza restaurant received an uncommon event when the building went black on Friday. Guests were advised to stay where they were until the issue was resolved. Though the problem was quickly fixed, one guest soon discovered that her daughter had gone missing from the arcade sometime before the blackout. _

_ "Faculty and guests looked all over the building before the owner, Mr. Henry Emily, discovered the child in a closet in the arms of one the animatronics who is unidentified at this moment. _

_ "'The girl was unharmed,' police Commissioner Albert Ross spoke in an interview after the discovery of the child, 'We hope that parents take a very important lesson to never leave their children unattended, even in a safe environment like Freddy Fazbear's.' _

_ "The mother of the child found refused to comment about the situation, saying only, 'I am thankful for the search everyone had put out for my daughter, but people need to be aware that Freddy's is not a safe place for anyone.'" _

_ "The restaurant has been under investigation since March of this year with regards to four other disappearances involving children between the ages of five to eight. Though those investigations remain ongoing, the restaurant is to remain open." _

Alexis read through the article a few times, looking at the date it was written: _September 27th, 1987._

"I wonder if Sarah knew about this child," the guard pondered before closing her laptop.

***

Heavy rock music startled Alexis from sleep, her phone buzzing to life on the table where she had apparently dozed off at. She sat up and stretched, raising her hands above her head and cracking her back before picking up the phone, "Hello?"

_ "Alexis? Is that you?" _

"Yeah, who is this?"

_ "Mitchell Inta,"  _ the male voice spoke,  _ "You know, your new coworker?" _

"Shit! Am I running late?!"

_ "No, no slow down!"  _ Mitch's voice was calm, but jittery,  _ "You're not late. It's not even three yet." _

"Well, what the heck?" Alexis grumbled, "What's going on?"

_ "Remember when you told us to let you know if we found anything?" _

"Yeah. I take it you found something?"

_ "Well, Tori did, actually. She was digging through some old files at her place with her writings and she found that old report on Freddy's she did back in high school. Apparently, one of the parts she covered was specifically about a girl who was found in a closet with an animatronic." _

"Yeah, I read an article about that."

_ "Did your article have a photo of the child?" _

Alexis stopped, her eyes widening, "Does Tori have a photo of the child?"

_ "Yeah, and you're not going to believe who it is." _


	16. Discoveries

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, two chapters today! I'm on a roll! XD  
> Thanks again for the comments too, lovelies, they keep me going on my story more than you know :)

At five-thirty, Alexis pulled into the parking lot of Freddy Fazbear's. Tori and Mitch were waiting by the double doors to the entrance, Tori clutching a folder close to her chest, her eyes wide with fear as Alexis approached.

"You have the photo?" Alexis asked, her heart pounding in her ears.

"Yeah," Tori handed the folder over to Alexis, "the image was a little blurry, so I had my brother try to clear it up to the best of his abilities, but it's better than what it was before."

The folder was opened, revealing ablack and white photo that had been taken from a newspaper clipping and blown up to fit on a sheet of printer paper. It was definitely a blurry image, but the trio could clearly see a group of people on either side of the photograph, watching a large bear-like creature in the center. The bear was a dark color with a black top hat and a black bowtie. He towered over many people that stood around him, obviously making them uneasy at seeing him. 

In his arms was a young girl. She wore a pair of light-colored overalls and a dark t-shirt, a teddy bear clutched in her hands that looked identical to one currently holding her. She had light colored hair pulled into two seperate pigtails that rested on either side of her head, her thumb was held hostage in her mouth. However, what surprised the three of them the most was the big eyes that seemed to take everything in with curiosity. Her facial features were very similar to someone all of them knew, even though they had only known her for one day.

"Is this... Sarah McCellian?" Alexis asked Tori.

"I have a sneaky suspicion that it is," the older girl replied, "I never saw the similarities until my brother fixed the picture."

The three looked at the photo again, the picture of Sarah as a child still looking up at them.

"And I'll bet my right shoe that the bear that's holding her is old Freddy, himself," Mitch pointed to the animatronic in the photo.

"But how is it even possible for them to be able to move at this point," Alexis asked, "I mean, they don't move during the day time."

"Felix told me that the animatronics used to move around during the day back in '87," Tori explained, "They stopped those special occasions after the bite that caused some poor kid to go into a coma for a month. I heard the parents filed a lawsuit against the company, which is why they closed their doors."

"But, I thought that was the Bite of '83," Alexis scratched her head in confusion.

"Two bites," Mitch explained, "My uncle filled me in a bit on what happened to the kids. It still surprises me that two were found alive out of twelve that were impacted."

"And we could potentially be working with this one."

A set of parents and their two kids stopped, giving the three night guards strange looks.

"Maybe we should take this inside," Mitch closed the file folder for Alexis, "Maybe someone in the kitchen knows about Sarah's past."

***

"Hiya, kiddos!" Denise greeted the trio as they entered the kitchen, sitting on the high stools before the large white counter. 

The head of the kitchen stood before them, working on a large birthday cake that was set on the counter before them, decorating the treat with white and blue frosting.

"I'm a bit busy at the moment, but I can call someone over if you want something to eat," Denise offered.

"No thank you, Denise," Tori smiled, "We actually want to ask you something."

"Me? Well, today must be my lucky day," Denise placed several candles on the cake before pushing the treat aside and wiping her hands on her stained apron, "What can I do you for?"

"We wanted to ask you about Sarah's connection with the restaurant as well as about her relationship with Freddy," Mitch asked.

"Well, not much I can tell you," Denise shrugged her shoulders, "I always knew she was attached to that over-grown teddy, never mind she used to own some sort of special edition plush toy of the bear that she received as a gift from the arcade when she was seven or eight."

"Did you know that she was a child that was lured away by a staff member back in '87?" Alexis asked.

Denise stopped, her brow furrowing. She looked on either side of her before leaning forward, whispering, "How do you know that?"

"I found this photo when we were going through some old files," Tori held up the picture to the window, "We believe this was taken after Sarah was found in the closet with Freddy guarding her."

"You best keep that information to yourselves," Denise whispered, "It would cause a lot of trouble in our already troubled establishment."

"How do you mean?"

Denise sighed, "Not everyone here knows about the animatronics being active. I do because I made the mistake of asking Sarah if I could stay late one night to finish up a few odds and ends in the kitchen. I've always seen her as a mother figure, since my own mother wasn't a part of my life, so it surprised me when she permitted me to stay and introduced me to Charlie and Chica.

"I'll say they startled me bad, especially when Foxy started talking in that well-versed pirate accent he has. It took me nearly a week to get used to the idea of the animatronics actually having an awareness of everything around them, even when they act like robotics during the daylight hours."

"You said not everyone knows," Mitch spoke softly, "Does Ashford know?"

"I doubt Sarah told him," Denise admitted, "That man only wants her around because of her mechanical abilities and not for everything she has done for this building, including keeping the animatronics calm during the daylight hours when we are at our highest peak."

"But Maxwell told me that there's already a maintenance staff specifically made for the repairing of animatronics," Alexis argued.

"That boy don't know a thing about mechanics, and neither do any of those men that the company hired," Denise growled, "All they do is sit in their offices behind the stage area and eat. Then again, I don't blame them. Sarah did throw a fit when one of them tried to repair an older animatronic that's been sitting in the back since god knows when."

The three guards looked at each other before Denise grumbled, "Me and my big mouth..."

"Are you going to tell us about this animatronic?" Tori asked, hope filling her eyes.

"Only that it was once called 'Spring Bonnie' and looks nothing like the rabbit," Denise wrinkled her nose, "It's uglier than a zombie and smells worse than the Titan Arum."

"Yuck!" Tori stuck her tongue out in disgust.

Doors to the kitchen opened then, Maxwell entering with three security shirts in his arms.

"Thought I'd find you three here," the second in command smiled, "Bugging Denise are we?"

"Nope, just asking questions."

"Well, hate to cut the interview short, but it's nearing six and we need you on the floor. Don't forget to put these on too, that way you're officially a part of the family."


	17. Sidetracked

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good morning, lovely readers!  
> This next chapter is mostly going to be cute fluffiness before we get to some angst. I will post the next chapter at some point today, whenever that will be is another question.  
> So, please enjoy some fluffy goodness!

As the three guards moved to their stations, Alexis retook her place in front of the side stage where she and Maxwell had worked the previous day.

It seemed Sarah had left behind a note for the guards to return to the places they were yesterday and continue training under the respected teachers until tomorrow afternoon. They would switch things up once she returned.

"Is Sarah off tonight, then?" Alexis asked Maxwell as he joined her on the left.

"Hm? Oh, that woman never takes a break," Maxwell chuckled, "Though I wouldn't be surprised if she decided not to show up. After all this prepping, she needs and deserves a month's worth of vacation."

"Doesn't she get time off?"

Maxwell shrugged, looking back over at his charge, "Honestly, Sarah should  _ take _ time off. The last time I heard she took a much needed vacation was only a day before Ashford arrived, and the restaurant was closed on that day due to a water leak."

"Couldn't the company force her to take time away, though?"

"They may, but I haven't heard anything regarding forced time off."

Alexis nodded, turning her attention to the main stage. Cynthia and Wayne waved at her from either side of the stage, wide smiles on their features.

"I see everyone is getting used to seeing additional help around here," Maxwell chuckled as Alexis waved shyly back.

"Speaking of which," the younger guard looked up at her superior, "Why didn't you tell us that our animatronics were actually alive?"

Maxwell looked around the area before moving closer to Alexis, murmuring, "Not everyone knows about the animatronics, but you already knew that."

When Alexis nodded, the guard continued, "When I worked my first overnight here, I'll admit that I was madder than a hippo with a hernia that no one had given me the heads up about them. When I confronted Sarah about the whole ordeal, she made me realize that not only would the animatronics be in jeopardy of being broken down, but the restaurant could face some serious accusations. Especially from a particular set of lawyers that had wanted the place closed and destroyed, permanently.

"So, those of us who did know about them made the promise never to speak of the events regarding the truth behind the lifeline of the animatronics. Nevermind that Freddy back here would have maimed someone if we told," Maxwell thumbed to the curtain behind him.

"So, does that mean all the animatronics are like that?" Alexis murmured, "Even the ones in the Parts and Service room?"

"Even those ones, however there is a catch. The animatronics need to be powered on in order to have the ability to move about, and there's only one Sarah refuses to touch or power on."

"That would be the one known as 'Spring Bonnie'."

Maxwell's eyes widened, "How did you know?"

"Denise told us that it was an older one when we asked her about it."

"Do me a favor, alright?" Maxwell leaned close, whispering in Alexis' ear, "Don't, under any circumstances, mention that animatronic to the others. As a matter of fact, don't even look at it."

Both guards were quickly interrupted by their radios going off.

_ "Hey! You two!"  _ Troy's voice came over the speaker,  _ "One of the security systems alerted me that there is a child climbing around behind the side stage!" _

_ "Calm down, Troy,"  _ a familiar voice spoke over the speaker,  _ "Maxwell and Alexis probably didn't see them climb up there. I'll take care of it." _

"Sarah?" Maxwell spoke into his radio, "What are you doing here?"

_ "Never you mind, Maxwell,"  _ Sarah's voice came over, _ "Alexis, could you climb onto the stage and make sure none of the animatronics are hurt?" _

"Will do. But what should I do if I see the kid?"

_ "Just let me take care of it, I'll be there momentarily." _

***

The curtains were drawn aside as the older woman made her appearance on the side stage, "Anything wrong?"

"No, everyone seems to be alright," Alexis answered, "I found her too, by the way," Alexis pointed her flashlight down by Chica's legs. Both of the guards could see the tail end of a pink shirt and the bottoms of blue shorts and could hear soft sniffling.

"Alright, stay here," Sarah pulled her light out, moving toward the child.

"Hey, honey, what are you doing back here?" Sarah's voice was soft in the still darkness.

"M-Miss S-Sarah!" the child was pleasantly surprised to see the guard, her sniffling had subsided.

"Yes, it's me," Sarah's hand came in contact with golden curls, ruffling the child's head, "What are you doing hiding back here?"

"I-I... I wanted to hide," the girl spoke.

"From who?"

The child was silent before speaking, "There were those mean boys in the arcade again, Miss Sarah. They were making fun of me and my friends. They... They ripped my Bonnie in two pieces!" The little one began to cry, loud harsh tears falling from her already red eyes as her hands balled into fists.

"Hey, hey, it's alright," Sarah scooped the child up into her arms, "I'm here, now. Those bullies really must've hurt your feelings, huh?"

The little one nodded, tears still staining her cheeks.

"But, I know something that would cheer you up in no time," Sarah grinned, "Do you want to meet my friends?"

"Your friends?" the little girl looked up in surprise, "Are they mean?"

"No, not at all," Sarah smiled, chuckling softly, "Actually, they're right here. You're hiding behind one of them."

Alexis watched as Sarah came around with the little girl in her arms, standing beside her and facing the animatronics, "Everyone, I'd like you to meet a little friend of mine."

Freddy's eyes opened, the blue pupils glowing in the darkness before he shifted in his place, "Well, hello there, little one! I'm Freddy Fazbear! These are my friends, Bonnie the Bunny and Chica the Chicken."

"Hello, sweetheart!" Chica greeted, her purple eyes glowing as well, "Welcome to Freddy's!"

"Hello, fellow bandmate!" Bonnie greeted, "Do you like music?"

"Yes, yes I do," the little girl smiled, giggling softly as the large purple rabbit spoke.

"Do you know the song 'Five Little Bunnies'?"

"Yes! It's my favorite!"

"Really?" Bonnie's ears twitched forward and adjusted his guitar, "It's my favorite too! Do you want to sing it with us?"

The little girl looked up at Sarah, who nodded down at her. The little girl nodded eagerly.

"Alrighty then!" Freddy grinned, "Go ahead, Bonnie. Give us a cord!"

The rabbit began to strum the guitar as both Freddy and Chica began to sing:

_ "Hippity hop and hippety hey! Five little bunnies went out to play. Hippety hop and hippety hey! One little bunny hopped away!" _

Alexis and Sarah swayed as the animatronics sang their short tune with the child following along.

_ "Hippity hop and hippety hey! Four little bunnies went out to play. Hippety hop and hippety hey! One little bunny hopped away!" _

_ "Hippity hop and hippety hey! Three little bunnies went out to play. Hippety hop and hippety hey! One little bunny hopped away!" _

This continued for a few more minutes before reaching the end of the tune:

_ "Hippity hop and hippety hey! One little bunny went out to play. Hippety hop and hippety hey! All of the bunnies have hopped away!" _

"I hope they all come back some day," the little girl finished.

"Oh, gosh, I hope so too," Bonnie's large mechanical hand reached forward and patted the top of the little girl's head, "That way you can play with them again sometime."

"What do you say little one?" Sarah asked, pulling the little girl's eyes from the animatronics.

"T-Thank you."

"You're welcome," Bonnie smiled, "and don't forget to always smile. It'll make all of us happy too."

"Thank you, Bonnie," the head of security smiled, "Now, it's time to say good-bye. She needs to go back to her mother, who no doubt is very worried."

"Of course," Chica leaned forward, her beak pressing the top of the girl's head, "Have fun!"

"Come and see us again sometime!" Freddy smiled, "We'll be waiting!"

The small group watched as the animatronics eyes closed, falling into silence and still as stone.

***

"Oh! Renee!" A worried mother came rushing forward as both Sarah and Alexis came out from behind the curtain, the little girl still in Sarah's arms.

"Momma!" Sarah handed the child off to the mother, both embracing each other in thankfulness.

"Renee, baby, what did I tell you about wandering off?" Renee's mother looked at her girl.

"I'm sorry, momma. Those boys were back in the arcade and they tore my Bonnie bunny!" Renee explained, "They started making fun of me so I went to go hide."

"You can't just hide from your problems, Renee," her mother scolded, "And you need to tell me what happened. I'm sure Miss Sarah here would've helped us resolve this issue easily instead of making us both scared of where you disappeared to."

"You're mother's right," Sarah looked down at the child, "Can you make me and my friends a promise you'll come to one of us if something like that happens again?"

When Renee nodded, Sarah pulled a small token from her shirt pocket, "Take this to the prize counter. It will replace your old Bonnie Bunny for a new brand new one."

"Will they have my purple one?" Renee asked.

"I believe they do."

Renee looked up at her mother, "Please momma?"

"Of course, as long as you promise to keep me informed of your movements, alright?"

"Okay, momma."

As the two walked into the arcade, Alexis let out a large sigh, "That... went better than I thought it would."

"Most of the kids who wander onto the stages are ones that are bullied or feel lost," Srah explained, "They feel that if they hide with the animatronics, they'll notice them and ask what's wrong. But we haven't figured out a program to get them to do that, not yet at least."

"Speaking of which, how did the originals do that?"

"Perform for a small audience?" Sarah chuckled, her gaze shifting to the stage behind them, "Well, they've always had a knack for comforting children..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song, quite literally, is Five Little Bunnies.  
> And a fun fact about this chapter: I had initially wanted Tori, Alexis, and Mitch to meet Sarah this way, but scrapped it when I got to that point, but decided to keep the idea in order to show Sarah's relationship with the guests.


	18. Confrontations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for posting this chapter so late, I started to get busy with other things. However, it's here now so please enjoy!

"You're not in your guard uniform," Alexis pointed out, surprised by the change.

The darkness of the closed curtains had hidden the uniform Sarah had donned. Gone was the heavy security shirt and black dress pants, as heavy cotton coveralls dyed in purple covered the head of security's body, the sleeves rolled up to show off the strange lighting bolt scars that still remained on her forearms. Grease speckled the heavy cloth and the smell of oil surrounded Sarah. 

The head looked at her appearance before laughing, "Oh, this is what I wear when I'm needed in the Parts and Service room. Speaking of which, I will be around this evening if you need me for anything. However, I'm needed to help with the repair on old Fredbear in the back. My goal is to have him ready by tomorrow so you three can help set up the final side stage, which will be over by 'Pirate's Cove.' Then, we'll get the animatronic situated tomorrow after that's all said and done. Think you, Tori, and Mitch can handle everything on your own tonight?"

"Maybe, but-"

"I trust you, Alexis," Sarah patted the girl's head before heading back down the hallway.

"Heh, just like Sarah... disappeared before you can get a word in," Maxwell chuckled behind Alexis.

"Oh, shut up."

***

The evening continued uneventfully. Guests continued to move about the restaurant as the toys played on the hour, music and laughter filling the building like the day before.

It felt much like dejavu when it was time to close the place. Maxwell and Alexis, with Cynthia and Wayne, helped the tired customers to the doors while parents offered to carry the prizes many of the children had received. With the doors locked and the closed sign flipped forward, the guards either escorted the waiting staff to the doors or began the cleaning chores around the building, the animatronics looking on in silence.

Denise came out of the kitchen, the rest of her staff in tow, with three large pizzas and a plate of home-made cookies.

"I found the batter in the freezer," the head of the kitchen chuckled, "though I don't recall making any batter yesterday. I thought I would make up the sweets tonight as the treat for our night guards."

Tori, Mitch, and Alexis looked at one another while Maxwell chuckled, most likely knowing full-well who had made the batter the previous night.

Loud slamming interrupted the laughter as two loud voices echoed down the hallway, stopping everyone in their tracks.

"I told you Ashford, the Spring Bonnie animatronic is just too dangerous to repair right now! How many times do I have to tell you this?!"

"What's wrong with the animatronic? I had several members of my team look the robot over and they say different! You have yet to tell me what has gotten you so concerned that you won't even touch the thing, let alone look at it!"

"Ashford, please try to understand that there are some things that are best left alone. That animatronic would be a walking hazard if it was even turned on!"

"You're putting me in a tight spot, Sarah. The company wants both Fredbear and Spring Bonnie on that stage for our anniversary. So, fix the animatronic or I'll find someone who will."

Ashford appeared in the entrance to the main party room, his briefcase in hand, and moved toward the table. As he reached for a paper plate, Denise slapped his hand away.

"Oh no, Mr. Ashford," Denise scowled at the man, "You're in no position to be snatching food tonight."

"What is going on with you people tonight?" Ashford growled.

"Have you any idea of the potential harm you could be putting on this building if you force the repair of the Spring Bonnie animatronic?" Maxwell came up to the manager, his arms crossing over his chest and pulling himself to his full height.

"If you all have a problem with it, there's the door," Ashford smirked, "None of you are in a position to be threatening me, not even you Maxwell. I can terminate your jobs just as easily as I created them. I'm sure there are plenty of people in this world who would take this job for a crust of bread instead of nine-fifty an hour."

"Don't threaten Sarah," Denise growled, "That's all we're saying."

"And don't touch that creature," Maxwell agreed.

Ashford huffed, snatching up a paper plate and filled it before storming out the door, muttering all the way.

"Wow, I didn't realize how mad the manager could get," Tori commented in the still silent room.

"Honestly, he should show more respect," Denise growled, "All he does is sit in his office, eat our food, and make threats."

"Let it go, Denise," Maxwell shook his head, his arms dropping to his sides, "It's no use of what we say or do. The only way he'll show concern is if one of our friends here decides to stuff him into a suit."

Although some of the other staff members laughed, the night guards kept silent as they knew that option was still a possibility.

***

As the heavy security locks came crashing down, noises came from the main showroom. All three night guards peered in to find the animatronics stretching their limbs and moving about.

"Ah! Tori, Alexis, and Mitch!" T-Bone greeted, running over to th three and embracing them in a big hug, "Nice ta see ya again!"

"H-Hi, T," Tori squacked before the large animatronic rabbit set them on the ground.

"Is Sarah around this evening?" Freddy asked, approaching.

"She's working in the Parts and Service room on Fredbear this evening," Alexis answered the big brown bear, "That's what she told me at least."

Freddy was gone before she could finish her sentence. Alexis stood there flabbergasted as Foxy's deep laughter came from the entrance of Pirate's Cove, "Har, har! The Capt'n 'as a soft spot, eh?"

"We already knew that, Foxy," Justice sighed, rolling her eyes at her counterpart.

"What's tha' suppos' ta mean, lass?"

"You know what I mean, so stop playing dumb."

The pirate fox shrugged his shoulders, "Guilty is charged."

Bonnie let out a heavy laugh before Alexis tapped on the animatronic's elbow, "Hm?"

"Um, we need to ask you guys some questions," Alexis spoke.

"About what?" Fredrick asked.

"Well, it's a long story," Mitch explained, "We wanted to ask Denise, but she seemed just as closed up as the rest of the staff about everything going on around here."

"And since you animatronics are next closest to Sarah, we thought you'd might be able to tell us. Or, at least, answer a few questions regarding the history of this place," Tori finished.

"Why is it that I've got a funny feeling they're going to ask about the Bite of '87?" Bonnie looked down at Foxy, who groaned internally.

"Don' remind me..."

"It's not just the Bite of '87," Alexis admitted.

Bonnie, being the second in command of all the animatronics, scratched his purple jaw for a long while before speaking, "Very well. What is it you would like to know, exactly?"

"We found this photo while going through some reports, files," Tori handed the black and white photo to the large rabbit from her folder, "We wanted to see if we could find anything that may have been able to help Sarah with keeping her promise to you guys and stumbled upon this."

Bonnie looked the photograph over, his ears drooping to the sides of his head. Chica noticed and stood on her tip-toes, her beak dropping open at the sight.

"Well, I'll be a sea-monkey's uncle..." Foxy replied, peaking at the photo with his patchless eye.

"What is it of?" Fredrick asked.

"Well, it's... It's a photo of our little Sarah... the day that Silver Eyes attempted to take her from her family and give her to us..." 


	19. The Bite of '83 and the First Disappearances

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first part of Freddy's lore.  
> Now, warning, I don't follow the lore to FNAF very close in this, but enough to have an idea of what happened in the games.  
> Please don't hate me for this.  
> Also, be prepared to cry. I did while writing this chapter...

"Perhaps we'd better sit down," Chica spoke softly, resting a yellow winged hand on Bonnie's shoulders.

"I'd like ta kno' how ye came by this," Foxy turned to the three guards.

"Questions later, Foxy," Bonnie spoke, "These three deserve utter transparency. Especially with that monster still running loose."

The animatronics took seats as Tori, Alexis, and Mitch followed. The toys took seats on the main stage as the originals sat in the small seats that surrounded the make-shift dinner table, the guards seated amongst their new friends.

Bonnie sighed, "I suppose the best place to start would be at the beginning. Mind yourselves, I'm not entirely sure about everything as I was created back in '84, only a few weeks before Freddy's restaurant opened."

The night guards nodded, allowing the animatronic rabbit to begin;

"In the early 1980s, there were two men who wanted to create a harmonious atmosphere for children and grown-up alike. They wanted to build a restaurant that was both a place to relax, but was also a place for entertainment, as they both had families of their own. The two men worked together closely and created 'Fredbear's Family Diner.'

"It was a beautiful building, filled with colors and bright lights. Food filled the tables and music was constantly playing. The adults loved the food and the children loved the animatronic characters, the first of our kind to ever embrace the stage. That all changed about two months after the restaurant first launched.

"In October of 1983, one of the owner's children was unintentionally hurt by the Fredbear animatronic. From what we know, the boy was severely bullied by his older brother and sister in the weeks leading up to his birthday. He developed a fear of the animatronics, often hiding under the tables at the restaurant when his father would bring him into the establishment. His father had hoped that a party at the very place his son was afraid of would help him get over his fear of the animatronic characters. However, the young boy's siblings had other plans."

Bonnie stopped, closing his eyes as his body shuddered.

"On the day of the party, only a few moments before the guests were to arrive, the older siblings and a few of their friends donned masks of the characters and tormented the youngest. The older brother and his friends picked the boy up and took him over to where Fredbear and Spring Bonnie were standing and tormented him some more before pressing his head into Fredbear's mouth. The animtronic's jaw wasn't meant to hold anything in it's mouth, thus the unknown weight caused the mouth to snap shut.

"Panic set in then. The two men closed the restaurant once the boy was safe in the hospital, both families waiting for endless hours for the results. But, the worst had happened."

"The boy... died?" Tori asked, tears stinging her eyes.

"Unfortunately so," Bonnie sighed, "The impact as well as the shock caused the boy to fall into unconsciousness before he succumbed to trauma and blood loss. If he had survived, he would've had severe brain damage and may have never been to do the things he had been able to do before."

The animatronic watched as the guards took everything in for a few moments before asking, "Should I continue?"

"Please, what happened to the boy's family? His father? His siblings?"

Bonnie rubbed his purple fur on his head, "I know that the restaurant shut down for good after that incident and I believe officials charged the elder brother and his friends with unintentional homicide, though I'm not sure if they went to prison or not. Both owners were distraught at the death of the boy and the loss of their safe haven. One of them decided to try again, asking his partner for help. He agreed, on the condition that he would design the new animatronics."

"It took almost a year before the restaurant reopened under a new name, with a new face. But, all was good for the first few months... until the first of ten children disappeared without a trace."

Bonnie shook his head, his arms wrapping around his waist as he slumped in his seat, "I don't know if I can tell this story anymore... it hurts..."

"Don't worry, Bonnie Bunny," Chica stood up and moved over by her friend, resting a hand on his shoulder, "You need a break. I'll tell them this next part, as it's more difficult for you."

The rabbit smiled at his friend before nodding, turning his attention to his animatronic paws that now sat idle in his lap. Chica picked up her cupcake from the table as the light on the candle began to glow.

"Freddy Fazbear's Pizza opened its doors on a cold dark morning in September of 1984," the chicken began, "The place had nearly doubled its size and was made specifically as a place to celebrate every occasion imaginable. Birthdays, graduations, anniversaries... we had it all. And the restaurant was successful for most of that year. That was until at a holiday party in December of 1984 that the first child disappeared without a trace.

"The owners and staff had called in the local police department as everyone looked in the building. They searched in every party room, the office, the kitchens, the arcade, everywhere and anywhere the child may have wandered off to. It was useless, though. They closed the case in February of 1985, much to the disappointment of both owners and the parents. Then it happened again in late June. Then again in September, February of 1986, May, and the last one was in October. 

"Rumors began to spread through the community, most of them claiming that the cause of the disappearances was that of the young boy seeking revenge on Fazbear's as the reason behind his death. Other people claimed that the children had followed a strange animatronic character or shadow, leading them away from the building.

"Regardless, if it was a ghost or a shadow, the owners decided to take precautions and set up the first batch of night guards. One of them, a man named Mike, was doing his nightly rounds when he found that we had come to life."

Chica took a breath, closing her eyes before continuing, "Leading up to the decision, the spirits of those missing children unknowingly attached themselves to us. We were the ones who they were able to identify with the most, thus we became their 'protectors,' in a way. Our shells were able to hold their spiritual bodies, and in exchange, they told us everything that had happened to them leading up to their untimely demise.

"We all knew that it was a man who had lured them away from their families and friends into a secret room hidden somewhere in the Parts and Service Room and that he wore a purple shirt of some kind and had eyes the color of silver. We also knew he was using the Fredbear animatronic suit as a way to lure them away because everyone loved Freddy and the kids had loved Fredbear back in '83.

"Of course, one could imagine the outrage that had sparked in Freddy upon hearing this. When the building closed that night, he moved from his stage and attempted to attack the night guard. Bonnie and I followed soon after, believing that this was the man who was the source of all of our problems. Foxy joined in a little later, constanting peeking out from behind his curtain and waiting for the guard to not be watching him in order to make his move."

"Chica, wait a minute," Alexis interrupted, "There were five kids that had gone missing by this time, but only four of you were active. What happened to the fifth?"

"Ah," Chica smiled, "the fifth child had become a part of Puppet. He was the first of us to awake and had attempted to warn us that trying to attack the night guard would be of no use. It would've been like trying to catch fish with a hook and no bait, all of the results would be the same.

"Freddy didn't care, however. He saw it as his job to put a stop to the man that had taken five innocent lives without a thought. He had a need to protect anyone else from suffering the same fate. Thus, Bonnie, Foxy, and I continued to follow his lead, moving after hours and attempting to break into the office to give that man a taste of his own medicine, so to say."

The light on the candle died as Chica finished, "But that all changed in September of 1987, when little Sarah and her mother came to the restaurant."


	20. Confrontations Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!  
> Apologies for the delay once more, I have been busy prepping for inventory at my work and was recently recognized by the company for my five years of dedication, which is really big for me.  
> But, I'm back now and have two chapters in store for you all today! Please enjoy and leave a comment/kudo if you could!

Chica returned her cupcake to the table, sighing softly, "It wouldn't be fair for us to tell Sarah's story. Though it is harder as it cost her so much pain and agony during that time."

"I can understand why," Tori murmured softly, "It must have been very traumatic..."

"I think it had more effect on her mother, that poor woman," Bonnie shook his head, "I still hear her screams and cries from time to time..."

"Was her mother attacked by Silver Eyes?" Alexis asked.

"Nay, lass," Foxy spoke, "Sarah's mother was a lonely woman at the time. 'Cause of their current situation, she was very attached ta 'er daughter and worried 'bout 'er. If ye can put yerself in 'er shoes, wouldn't ye be worried if ye only child vanished withou' a trace?"

"I suppose so," Alexis said.

"Does Sarah ever talk about what happened?" Mitch asked.

The three originals looked at each other before shaking their heads in a negative.

"She has told only one other person about what happened," Justice spoke up from her spot, "But that was after he confronted her about it."

"Who-?" Alexis started before T-Bone cut her off.

"That's a story for another day, I think," the rabbit spoke.

"T-Bone's right," Bonnie nodded in agreement to his counterpart, "It would be too much for your beginner heads to wrap around right now."

Mitch nodded, curiosity rising in his eyes, "Do you think Sarah will tell us about what happened if we show her the picture, Foxy?"

"I dunno, lad," the fox admitted, "Though, I know fer certain, Freddy may try ta rip ya ta shreds if Sarah's reaction is bad."

"But, would you show us, at least, where in the Parts and Service room Sarah is?" Mitch asked.

"Aye, lad. That I can do fer ye."

***

The Parts and Service room was dingy and smelt of mothballs and dirt. Dust and cobwebs hung in all corners of the room, some even clinging to the old animatronics heads that lined the metal shelving that lined the walls and center of the room.

"Wow, it looks like something straight out of a B-horror film," Tori scrunched her nose as she and the others followed the animatronics into the room.

"Aye, but the real monsters ar' the ones ye befriended," Foxy's voice let out a dark chuckle.

The trio followed Foxy to the far back of the room, which had been opened to a large workshop-like area. Sarah stood before a long wooden table, still clad in the deep purple jumpsuit with the name "McCellian" on her back. Loud buzzing filled the workshop as she worked, Freddy Fazbear not far away from her side and watching with interest.

"Pardon us, lass!" Foxy's voice boomed over the loud noise, "Yer mates be needin' a word wit' ye!"

The buzzing didn't stop, however.

"I don't think she heard you, Foxy!" Mitch shouted.

"Aye! Her hearin' must be blocked! Freddy! We be needin' Sarah!"

The bear cupped one hand to his ear, trying to hear what the fox was saying over the noise. The animatronic fox shouted again as Freddy cupped his hands around his mouth, making his deep voice even louder over the buzzing, "Alright, Foxy! Give me a second!"

The group watched as Freddy stood, making enough movement for Sarah to turn to look at the towering animatronic. The bear pointed behind her, making her head turn slightly. At the sight of the party, the guard switched her equipment off, setting it on the table as the buzzing slowed to a stop. She pulled the large heavy gloves off her hands before pushing the safety goggles up on the top of her head.

"Sorry guys," Sarah turned, pulling earplugs out of her ears, "did you need something?

"Aye, lass," Foxy pushed the three guards forward, "Yer mates be needin' somethin' of ye."

"Oh?"

Alexis stepped forward, taking the folder offered to her by Tori, "Sarah, I know that you want to save the legends and rumors of this place until a later night. But, we have to talk about one incident in particular."

The head of security raised a brow, crossing her arms over her chest, "Hmm?"

"Well," Mitch took a step forward, stopping beside Alexis, "we noticed that you made a promise to the animatronics, though we still have no idea what that promise is. Alexis, here, thought it would be a good idea to dig into the history of the restaurant to find something that may help you with keeping this promise."

"And you all agreed to do it?" Sarah asked, her face turning red.

"Yes," Tori explained, "and before you say anything Sarah, please hear us out."

The head of security nodded, permitting the guards to continue.

"A while back, I had done a report on the restaurant and it's original owners," Tori continued, "I was going through some old papers and photos when I came across this."

Alexis handed the folder over to Sarah, who took it and flipped the covering open.

The trio watched as her face drained, her eyes widening and jaw dropping. Fear covered her features as she closed her mouth and gulped quietly. Tears sprung to her eyes as she pulled the paper out of the folder, let the folder drop with a  _ 'clap.' _

"Sarah?" Freddy approached her cautiously, peering down at the paper in her hands. Silence filled the room as both bear and head stared at the photo, one filling with absolute rage and the other in shocked silence.

Freddy's electric blue eyes shot up from the photo, turning his attention to the three guards, "What is this?! Where did you find this?!"

The trio jumped back in shock as Sarah sighed heavily, "Freddy-"

"I demand an answer!" the animatronic bear roared.

"Freddy!" Charlie shouted, "Sarah!"

The head of security was beginning to fall forward, her eyes rolling to the back of her head. The animatronic bear moved quickly, scooping Sarah up as she fainted, the photo falling to the ground and forgotten.

"Come on," Fredrick called from the back of the group, "Let's take her to Puppet."

***

When Sarah opened her eyes, she was perched back against one of the chairs in the main party room with Puppet standing in front of her and her charges on either side of him as he looked on. The other animatronic characters surrounded them, worry filling their robotic eyes as they sat or stood at a distance.

"Oww," Sarah pressed her hand to her forehead, "What happened?"

"You passed out, my dear," Puppet's wispy voice spoke, "Apparently, you've been putting up your block against those memories I returned to you and it was shattered. Do you remember anything from earlier?"

"I remember working on Fredbear to get him ready for the morning. Then, the rest of our family came in and..." Sarah's eyes looked up at the trio accusingly, "You three... you showed me a picture of my childhood..."

"I still want to know how you got a hold of it," Freddy's deep voice rumbled, the animatronic bear standing and moving toward the small group.

"Capt'n," Foxy spoke up, "It wasn't their fault..."

"For Fazbear's sake it was!" Freddy rounded on Foxy, both with fur bristling, "You knew that was going to happen! We all agreed that we would never speak of that experience again as long as we lived!"

"Freddy," Puppet moved, placing a hand on the bear's shoulder, "you must understand that we cannot rewrite what has happened nor can we forget. If it hadn't, I believe we would've been placed somewhere much darker. Understand that these new guards are only trying to help those whom we protect. It is the only way they can truly move on."

Freddy growled, "Still, throwing that photo at Sarah like that still wasn't something they should've done, especially if they knew of the pain it would bring with it."

"I will agree on that," Puppet nodded, "But, now, we need to shift our focus and make sure our sister is alright. As of now, she is reliving the trauma. She needs our help to calm her."

"I'm fine, Puppet, honestly," Sarah spoke from her chair.

"You're shaking like a leaf," Puppet turned back to the guard, "and I sense your blood has run cold from the fear that is still present in your body. Where is your friend?"

"He's in my bag in the office," Sarah sighed, looking down.

"Mitchell," the guard turned at Puppet's voice, "would you mind bringing Sarah's purse from the security office in here? She has something in there that will help calm her down and I'd rather she didn't try to walk to the office and back all by herself."

Mitch nodded, "Where's her bag?"

"I k-keep it under the d-desk," Sarah's voice began to shake, "i-in a c-cardboard b-box... y-you c-can't miss it..."

Mitch nodded before taking off down the darkened hallway.

"Will Sarah be alright?" Tori whispered to T-Bone.

The bright blue rabbit could only shrug, his guess was as good as hers.


	21. The Lone Survivor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the chapter I think a lot of us have been waiting for - Sarah's story of her very first encounter with the Animatronics, and her only one as a child.  
> Please enjoy and let me know what you think!

Mitch returned only a few moments later, Sarah's black purse in hand.

Chica and Charlie had gotten the head to swallow some water and presented her with milk and cookies to help ease her growing shudders that came from somewhere within her body and not the cold that seemed to slowly creep into the building. Freddy Fazbear was kneeling by her side, his large brown head in her lap as her fingers stroked his ears in calming strokes. Tori and Alexis were seated not far from where Sarah was sitting, Puppet standing behind them with a third chair for Mitch when he returned.

"Here," Mitch handed the bag to Chica, "I hope this is the right one."

"Should be," Chica smiled, her yellow hand digging into the bag before her eyes sparkled with joy, "There he is!" The bag was dropped as the large animatronic pulled out a worn plush bear. 

The plush bear looked very similar to the Freddy toy plushies that surrounded the area in the arcade, except it may have been yellow at one point with a black top hat and black bow tie. It had faded over the years, now covered in balding patches on his belly, paws, and ears. There was also a bare spot on the left side of his muzzle, the freckles completely gone from where someone had rubbed him. His purple eyes were faded, making them look almost a lavender color, and fuzz gathered in random locations on his front, face, and back.

The guards watched as Chica brought the toy over to Sarah, who released Freddy's ears in favor of the plush toy. The head of security nuzzled the bear, rubbing her nose against his black button one, before pulling it close to her chest and hugging it tightly as her eyes closed.

"What's so important about that old plush?" Mitch whispered to Puppet.

"That bear helps Sarah when she's under stress or is having an anxiety attack," the animatronic explained, "She received it as a gift from us years ago and has had it since."

The trio turned as Freddy stood, his large black nose pressing into Sarah's hair as she looked down at the plush, rubbing his worn ears between her fingers.

"Ye alright, lass?" Foxy asked from his corner of the room.

"I th-think so," Sarah stuttered, taking in deep breaths and slowly letting them out, "J-Just got s-surprised, I think."

"No wonder," Freddy's eyes turned toward the trio, "Perhaps now we can understand where they found that old photo."

"Honestly, Freddy," Tori spoke, "I can't remember where I found it. I know that it was in a collection of old new stories that I used for a report back in high school and that it. I'm sorry that Sarah had an anxiety attack, we just wanted to know the truth."

The head sighed heavily, still stroking the bear's ears as she spoke, "I know you w-want to know about what h-happened. It's just h-hard for me because I've lived that experience. Y-You don't know or understand true h-horror until it's t-too late."

"You don't have to tell them," Freddy spoke softly.

"And if I w-want to?" Sarah challenged, her voice still shaking, "Y-You forget, Freddy, that the l-last time I told this story was under d-different circumstances. He forced me to speak, not unlike them. B-But, they have reason for wanting to know."

The bear nodded and fell silent, repositioning himself to sit on the ground beside Sarah as the head turned to the trio and began;

"In S-September of 1987, I was brought to the original Freddy Fazbear's restaurant as a birthday surprise from my step-father, R-Rich. Although he wasn't married to my mother yet, he was a father figure for me during my childhood. W-We played games, watched tv, went to the park, he even taught me how to r-ride a bike.

"He knew, as well, that I absolutely adored the 'Freddy and Friends' tv show and would bring me plush toys from the restaurant on the special occasions when he would take my mother out. Before the two of them left, he made a little show of presenting the plush toy to me, which made me and my sitter laugh. When I mentioned that I had never been to the restaurant before, he made arrangements with the owner of the place to have a little private birthday party, just for me."

Sarah chuckled, looking down at the worn plush, "My mom was so mad when she found out. As a single mother, it was hard for us to afford anything fun, so she ran on a very tight budget. She was scared that we wouldn't be able to afford anything at the place, but Rich said that he had talked to the owner, who was a close friend of his at the time, and they worked out all the details. 

"I remember going in and meeting the owner, Henry Emily..."

"You met Henry Emily?" Tori's mouth dropped.

"Oh, yes," Sarah smiled, "He was every inch a gentleman, taking my little hand and showing me the restaurant like a grandfather showing off his collection of toys to his grandkids. He even introduced me to Puppet, which is how I received this plush."

The bear was held up as Sarah continued, "It was a limited edition Fredbear plush toy that I had never seen before. Only three hundred of these had been made and they were incredibly rare to encounter as a gift from Puppet. So, to receive it shocked me as well as Mr. Emily."

"Were you afraid of Puppet when you first met him?" Alexis asked.

"I was surprised, that's for sure. But my mother nearly had a heart attack when he popped out of his little gift box and presented the smaller box to me."

Sarah laughed heartily, wiping the tears from her eyes, "That day was amazing... I watched Freddy, Bonnie, and Chica perform on stage before they were allowed to come off and visit with the audience. I knew there were staff members in the suits, of course, but it still made it very special when Chica approached me with a platter of cupcakes and offered them to us."

"It's true," Chica smiled when the trio looked at her in shock, "that was before everything happened, though."

Sarah nodded, her face falling then. She looked down at her bear, squeezing his little belly before her voice grew dark, "I had gone into the arcade by myself, though my mom insisted she follow me. Rich and Mr. Emily both assured her that there was nothing to worry about, that I was safe. But, I really wasn't.

"I was playing a game called 'Space Invaders,' which was popular during my childhood. A thinking game as well as a survival game. That's when I felt eyes watching me from the far corner of the room.

"I turned, wondering if it was my mom coming to get me so we could leave. But it wasn't her. In the far corner of the room was a great big yellow bear in a purple top hat and a purple bowtie. He looked exactly like Freddy, which made me smile in amazement. He lifted his hand and indicated for me to follow him.

"I turned back toward the party room, wondering if I should let my mother know where I was going. But, I figured I wouldn't be gone for more than a few minutes and the three of them were actually having fun. So, I ran over to Freddy and took his hand."

"That was very foolish," Alexis said.

"I was six-turning-seven," Sarah sighed, "Nobody's perfect at that age. Besides, if you thought your favorite character had suddenly appeared before you, what would you have done?"

"I hate to admit it, I'd probably do the same thing," Mitch agreed.

"Same," Tori answered, looking up toward T-Bone, "though I think I already did it."

"Though, you were lucky that there were more guards as well as security implemented," Sarah explained, "Back then, the restaurant was smaller with fewer staff members and only one or two security guards during the day time. Even though the owner was there from open to close, there was still that chance of a child going missing. 

"When I took the Golden Freddy's hand, he pulled me through a back door and down the empty hallway. I remember asking where we were going. 

"'I saw you by yourself in the arcade,' he said, 'Don't you have any friends?'

"'I guess not any real friends, but I have you and Freddy, and Chica, and Bonnie, and Foxy, though he scares me sometimes.'

"Fredbear laughed and said, 'He scares everyone from time to time, but that's his nature as a mean, grouchy, old pirate. Did you want to meet them?'

"I, of course, was a little shocked. I thought I had already met them.

"'Oh no, not those mascots,' Fredbear smiled, 'I mean the real ones. The ones you see on your television every day at three o'clock when you get done with school.'

"'How do you mean?'

"'There's a secret portal in the Parts and Service Room that will take us to our world. I'd like you to come and join us, Sarah. We can play together for hours on end and eat all the pizza you ever wanted.'"

Sarah's fingers dug into the plush toy, feeling her heart begin to race and her stutter returned, "I wasn't s-sure what to say. I really w-wanted to go, but something was telling me this was a b-bad idea. T-Trying to sound reasonable, I asked F-Fredbear if I could return to this world w-whenever I w-wanted to see my mom again. Fredbear nodded before opening the door to the P-Parts and S-Service Room and p-pushed me inside.

"He s-sat me in a chair in the center of the room, the p-place dimmed and s-spooky. He told m-me he had to get s-set up b-before he could open the portal and I was to remain right there until he came back. But by then, someone had set up an alarm among the animatronics."

Sarah looked toward Foxy, "Foxy, c-could y-you...?"

"Aye lass," the fox nodded, "I know it be difficult fer ye."

Foxy turned to the trio, "As me original Pirate's Cove was not too far from ye ol' arcade, me ears 'ad picked up Sarah's an' Silver's conversation. Me wiring sent the trio an alert tha' a child was in trouble. The children, whom our shells protect, decided tha' they 'ad ta stop this one from happenin'. They pulled Bonnie and Chica awake, the two of 'em disappearin' off stage to take care of a distraction. Freddy an' I waited 'til the time was right."

"But Foxy," Alexis interrupted, "the blackout occurred during a show, how were Bonnie and Chica able to set the blackout when they were onstage performing?"

"Ah, ye learn quick lass," Foxy grinned, "They 'ad set up a timer o'sorts using they're wirin' and the automatic light fixtures above our 'eads. That was before they were called back ta stage, and thus a distraction was set. As soon as those lights plunged inta darkness, Freddy an' I headed off to the Parts'n'Service room were the scallywag 'ad our girl.

"She be scared ta death, crouched on the ground in the far back corner wit' tha' monster desperately trying to find his way around in the dark. I jumped him, allowin' Freddy ta grab Sarah and pull 'er ta his chest while I attempted to rid him of tha' blazin' suit he 'ad on. But he was quick, like he knew we were plannin' an attack on 'im an' had 'imself prepared. He managed to git me ol' hook caught in one of the shelvin' units before he took off. I was lucky this ol' hook could screw off an' back on jus' as easily.

"When I told Freddy what happened, he told me ta go back ta me Pirate's Cove before the lights turned back on. He wanted ta stay wit' Sarah an' make sure the lass was alright. I agreed, knowin' it be better if they found Freddy instead of old Foxy with the child."

"And they did," Freddy stood, standing beside Sarah who had pulled the bear closer to her now, taking deep breaths in and out as the animatronic continued, "Sarah was scared to death when she saw me, but knew I was the real deal. I held her close, keeping her eyes shielded from the fight between Silver Eyes and Foxy. I had to explain that the person she had followed was not Fredbear, but someone in a suit who was a very bad man."

"Freddy, you s-scoulded me too for w-wandering off," Sarah pulled herself back to the current time, "But you were happy that I was safe. You asked if I was hurt, if he had done anything to me..."

"And you replied that he just startled you," Freddy finished, "Yes, I remember. I even played my music box to help calm you down when I returned you to your mother."

Sarah sighed, laughing softly, "Oh, she was so mad at Rich and Mr. Emily both for what happened. She didn't speak to Rich for almost a year before they reconciled, on the agreement they would never, ever speak about Freddy Fazbear's again."


	22. The Bite of '87 and the End of Silver Eyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good morning everyone! It's been a while, hasn't it?  
> I do apologize again for delay in updates, I am trying to get back into the swing of writing every day, but it doesn't always work out that way.  
> Regardless, here's the next part where a little more light is shed on Fazbear's Pizza. Please enjoy!

"But, someone must've brought up the restaurant again," Alexis said.

Sarah turned toward her, sighing heavily, "Yes, but that was years later. Another story for another time, I think though."

The head stood from her chair, still clutching the plush bear to her chest, "I think, after telling you all of this, perhaps it's best to leave sleeping dogs lie."

"But, Sarah-"

"No buts. I know you three want and are trying to help me, but the promise I made years ago doesn't concern you. You're all too young to understand the gravity of the current situation. Please."

Before another word could be said, Sarah walked down the hall with Freddy trailing behind her.

"Don't take anything she said too hard," Justice came around to the trio, resting hands on their shoulders, "She's just under a lot of stress as of late."

"An' it didn' 'elp wit' tellin' 'em 'bout what 'appened when she was a child, lass," Foxy spoke up, "Every time she tells tha' story, it's like a cloud covers her head fer hours at a time."

"Regardless, Foxy" Puppet spoke softly, "She can't deny that it happened. If she continues to put those boundaries up around that memory, it will slowly kill her, drive her to madness. None of us, even Freddy, want to see that happen to her. As long as she continues to remain in shock about the past, she will always have one foot in the dark."

"Will she ever overcome that fear Puppet?" Tori asked.

"I'm unsure, young one," Puppet's face fell in shame, "I can only see what will happen if Sarah's ways continue to remain unchanged. Though, I understand that she is currently grieving a loss of childhood. She lived in a bliss of what she thought was a wonderful special day until I showed her the truth. Her own mother wanted to deny that it happened, giving false reasons as to why she couldn't return here to us. It eventually killed her, the stress of keeping everything that happened a secret. I fear it will do the same to our Sarah."

Tori nodded, her head too falling.

Chica clapped her hands together, "Well, on that note, I think a break is in order. There's still the Bite of '87 to cover, which is also not a very pretty story to explain."

"I nearly forgot about asking that," Mitch chuckled, "I was so lost in Sarah's story."

"Aye," Foxy answered, "but ye won't be hearin' me tell that one, lad. That one is... difficult to say the least."

Justice placed her hand on Foxy's shoulder, "Don't worry, Foxy. I'm sure Bonnie or Chica would be more than willing to tell that old tale." 

"After cookies and milk, Justice," Chica replied sternly, "Although the next chapters are a little bit lighter, they still reign effect on the restaurant's history."

***

Once all humans were settled with large cookies and milk in their hands, Puppet returned to his box, no doubt falling back asleep to the soothing sound of his music.

Bonnie reclined back in his chair, "Are you three certain you want to hear the rest? I'm sure all of you are shocked to know the truth behind our little Sarah's history with us and why she's so attached to Freddy."

"Please continue, Bonnie," Alexis answered, "Sarah may want us to butt out of the idea of helping her, but we want to help. It may help take some of the stress off of her shoulders and ease her suffering a bit."

"Very well, then," the giant purple bunny started again, "Shortly following Sarah's accident here in the pizzaria, another accident occured that put the final nail in the coffin for Freddy Fazbear's Pizza.

"Foxy was out for maintenance at the time, a large "Out of Order" sign was placed in front of his stage to remind staff members not to activate him during the daytime. However, one adventurous child got a bit too close and turned on ol' Foxy."

"How was that even possible?" Mitch asked.

"Ever heard of the expression, 'Eyes on your face, not on your hands'?" Bonnie's eye brow was raised.

"Only as a child," Tori answered.

"This poor kid was one of those who had never heard of that before. From my understanding, this particular child had come to Freddy's specifically to see Foxy the Pirate. When his family was told that he was out of order and unable to perform, the child slipped onto the Pirate's Cove stage and found the power switch for the animatronic. Foxy, surprised and frightened by everything going on, attacked the child unknowingly.

"Screams were heard from the stage, the staff making quick work to remove the guests from the premises while security and Mr. Henry got the child out of Foxy's open jaws. He was taken to the hospital, like the previous bite victim, and survived, surprisingly. His frontal lobe was severely damaged and he was in shock, which was understandable with his given situation.

"The family of this child wasn't going to let this matter slide under the rug. They took the company to court and won close to five thousand for hospital fees, treatment, and general emotional stress. Without enough money to keep the building open, Henry, eventually, shut the restaurant down and sold the rights to someone else."

"And they were the ones who brought us back out of the closet around the holiday season in 1987," Fredrick smiled, standing before the guards.

"Whatever happened to the victim?" Tori asked.

"That poor lad most likely went ta a psychiatric hospital," Foxy sighed, his head falling in shame, "I still remember seein' the shock on that poor lad's face when they removed 'im from me jaws, still hear the screamin', still see the blood. I never meant ta hurt the lad... jus was surprised, was all."

"Honestly, we never heard about what happened following that Bite," Chica answered, "It was devastating to us all at the time, the building being shut down and abandoned before the place was bought, rebuilt, and us four were tossed into the Parts and Service room with the intention on being forgotten."

"But Silver Eyes had nothing to do with the bite?" Alexis asked.

"No, unfortunately it was an unintentional accident," Bonnie spoke, "Though for a time, we thought it was Silver Eyes. The ghost children pointed out that if it was him, there would've been more sightings of him leading up to the bite. It was something we started to notice as time went on. 

"Small appearances of an unknown worker would show up a week leading up to a catastrophe. It was during the early months of 1988 that we noticed something was off. Chica, Freddy and I were on the stage during those few short months while the Toys were being created when we discovered a hidden room within the Parts and Service Room. A hidden back area that had once been used as a "safe area" during early 1983 for emergencies."

"The safe room for employees in case the spring locks of the original animatronics malfunctioned, you mean?" Tori asked, her eyes widening.

"We had assumed so," Bonnie nodded, "It was there that we had also discovered personal belongings of the children whom we now protected; a baseball cap, a kiddie bracelet, a bag of stickers or gum, random little keepsakes mostly. But, we now knew where it was that he was hiding, where he took the kids after murdering them in the Parts and Service room.

"We decided to be patient. We had to wait for him to make his move, to screw up once so we could surround him and end him. The waiting took us into May of 1988, but we found him."

"On that day, he had lured five more innocent children into the back room," Bonnie continued, "Five more innocent lives that were taken from their families, but more than what he usually took. He got sloppy, thinking that we wouldn't find him or his secret hidden away. That night, just before he was able to leave the building, we cornered him.

"But he had found out what we were planning and was ready as well. He had taken a fire emergency axe from its case and broke us down to scraps and pieces. But the children weren't going to let that stop them so easily. They chased the man who had caused them so much harm into the main party room, where the Toys were being set up to replace us. Puppet must've heard what was going on and warned the Toys and the spirits of the those children."

"We took it upon ourselves to go after that monster and avenge those poor souls," Fredrick cut in, growling low and cracking his knuckles, "We chased him into the Parts and Service Room, but our programming kicked in and we couldn't follow him behind the door."

"You couldn't enter the Parts and Service room like the previous animatronics?" Alexis asked.

"No," Justice sighed, "our programming denies us access to certain parts of the restaurant when we're in 'free roam.' It was mainly created to keep us in certain locations at certain times if we weren't performing. And, unfortunately, any back rooms were off limits to us."

"But it still didn't stop the children, that's for sure," T-Bone grinned wickedly, "The first four of the spirits were able to enter into the room because they knew what they were up against, leaving the rest of us to guard the remaining six.

"When they returned from inside the room, we all knew that it wasn't over yet. Silver Eyes had managed to escape by climbing into one of the older spring lock suits. However, his joy was short lived as the locks were old and rusted from neglect. They were activated, burying into his body as screams and cries filled the room. The ghost could do nothing but watch as he succumbed to his own demise."

"Silver Eyes died in one of the suits?" Alexis' eyebrows shot up.

"But if he died, how is it that the ghosts are still around?" Mitch asked.

The animatronics looked at one another, uncertainty filling their features.

"Silver Eyes never completely died," Freddy's voice filled the room, making everyone turn to the leader, "His soul is trapped in that Spring lock suit that he climbed into, unable to move on like the children he had murdered. That is why we hate the Spring Bonnie animtronic, why Sarah refuses to look at it or to touch it. It is the suit that Silver Eyes now possesses."


	23. Author's Note

And thus concludes the first part of "Our Little Horror Story."

I do want to apologize for keeping all of you in suspense about what has and will happen. The decision to make this a two part story came after much debate with some loss of interest.

I was having trouble with myself to continue writing this story. I had initially wanted to write the whole thing under one title, but with the lack of inspiration followed by some hate comments within the community, I needed to take time to get myself organized and rest.

While writing the next chapter to this ever-ongoing story, I thought that the best way to keep my interest for the story (and sanity intacked) was the divide it into two parts.

I do hope that there is no ill-will or bad blood between me and my readers for making this decision, especially since this year has been devestating to all of us in some way or another, and that you all will join me in the next few weeks when I reveal the beginning of the end to "Our Little Horror Story."

I love you guys, please stay safe!

-Mari

**Author's Note:**

> Comments? Kudos?


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